Determination of the Strong Coupling Constant and Multijet Cross Section Ratio Measurements

Abstract

Concepts and results of determinations of the strong coupling constant in hadron collisions are discussed. A recent alpha_s result from the inclusive jet cross section in pp-bar collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 TeV is presented which is based on perturbative QCD calculations beyond next-to-leading order. Emphasis is put on the consistency of the conceptual approach. Conceptual limitations in the approach of extracting alpha_s from cross section data are discussed and how these can be avoided by using observables that are defined as ratios of cross sections. For one such observable, the multijet cross section ratio R3/2, preliminary results are presented.