Radiative corrections to elastic muon-proton scattering at low momentum transfers
Abstract
We systematically calculate the radiative corrections of order α/π to elastic muon-proton scattering at low momentum transfers. These include vacuum polarization, photon-loop form factors of the muon and the proton, two-photon exchange corrections and soft photon radiation. In particular, we discuss these corrections for the kinematics of the upcomimg AMBER experiment with a 100\,GeV muon beam energy. It is found that for the ratio to the Born cross section, only the minor terms from the photon-loop form factors of the proton and two-photon exchange depend on the proton structure predetermined by the strong interactions. Since a prominent role among the radiative corrections is played by soft photon radiation, the calculation of the bremsstrahlung process μ p μ p γ should be extended beyond the soft photon approximation and tailored to the specific experimental conditions.