Electroweak two-loop corrections to the MW-MZ mass correlation in the Standard Model

Abstract

Recently exact results for the complete fermionic two-loop contributions to the prediction for the W-boson mass from muon decay in the electroweak Standard Model have been published [hep-ph/0007091]. This paper illustrates the techniques that have been applied for this calculation, in particular the renormalisation procedure and the treatment of IR-divergent QED contributions. Numerical results are presented in terms of simple parametrisation formulae and compared in detail with a previous result of an expansion up to next-to-leading order in the top-quark mass. An estimate of the remaining theoretical uncertainties of the MW-prediction from unknown higher-order corrections is given. For the bosonic two-loop corrections a partial result is presented, yielding the Higgs-mass dependence of these contributions.