paper

Forward Physics at the LHC

arXiv:0903.2980

Abstract

We review two inter-related topics. First, we consider the behaviour of "soft" scattering observables, such as sigma_{tot}, dsigma_{el}/dt, dsigma_{SD}/dtdM^2, particle multiplicities etc., at high-energy proton-(anti)proton colliders. We emphasize the sizeable effects of absorption on high-energy `soft' processes, and, hence, the necessity to include multi-Pomeron-Pomeron interactions in the usual multi-channel eikonal description. We describe a multi-component model which has been tuned to the available data for soft processes in the CERN-ISR to Tevatron energy range, and which therefore allows predictions to be made for `soft' observables at the LHC. The second topic concerns the calculation of the rate of exclusive processes of the form pp --> p+A+p at high energy colliders, where A is a heavy system. In particular, we discuss the survival probability of the rapidity gaps (denoted by the + signs) to both eikonal and enhanced soft rescattering effects. At the LHC energy, the most topical case is when A is a Higgs boson. At the Tevatron, measurements have been made for the exclusive diffractive production of various systems: A being either gamma-gamma, dijet, or a chi_c meson. We compare the observed rates with the expectations. Finally, we describe how predictions for exclusive processes may be checked in the early runs of the LHC.

34 pagers, 16 figures; based on a talk by Alan Martin at the Cracow Epiphany Conference on ``Hadron interactions at the dawn of the LHC, 5-7 January 2009; dedicated to the memory of Jan Kwiecinski, to be published in Acta Physica Polonica, new subsection 3.5 added

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