Transverse spin asymmetries for W-production in proton-proton collisions

Abstract

We study parity-even and parity-odd polarization observables for the process pp→l±X, where the lepton comes from the decay of a W-boson. By using the collinear twist-3 factorization approach, we consider the case when one proton is transversely polarized, while the other is either unpolarized or longitudinally polarized. These observables give access to two particular quark-gluon-quark correlation functions, which have a direct relation to transverse momentum dependent parton distributions. We present numerical estimates for RHIC kinematics. Measuring, for instance, the parity-even transverse single spin correlation would provide a crucial test of our current understanding of single spin asymmetries in the framework of QCD. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.