A systematic study of QCD coupling constant from deep inelastic measurements

Abstract

We reanalyze deep inelastic scattering data of BCDMS Collaboration by including proper cuts of ranges with large systematic errors. We perform also the fits of high statistic deep inelastic scattering data of BCDMS, SLAC, NM and BFP Collaborations taking the data separately and in combined way and find good agreement between these analyses. We extract the values of both the QCD coupling constant \alpha_s(M^2_Z) up to NLO level and of the power corrections to the structure function F_2. The fits of the combined data for the nonsinglet part of the structure function F_2 predict the coupling constant value \alpha_s(M^2_Z) = 0.1174 \pm 0.0007 (stat) \pm 0.0019 (syst) \pm 0.0010 (normalization) (or QCD parameter \Lambda^{(5)}_{MSbar} = 204 \pm 25 (total exper.err.) MeV). The fits of the combined data for both: the nonsinglet part and the singlet one, lead to the values \alpha_s(M^2_Z) = 0.1177 \pm 0.0007 (stat) \pm 0.0021 (syst) \pm 0.0009 (normalization) (or QCD parameter \Lambda^{(5)}_{MSbar} = 208 \pm 27 (total exper.err.) MeV). Both above values are in very good agreement with each other. We estimate theoretical uncertainties for \alpha_s(M^2_Z) as +0.0047 and -0.0057 from fits of the combine data, when complete singlet and nonsinglet Q^2 evolution is taken into account.