Single-Spin Beam Asymmetry in Semi-Exclusive Deep-Inelastic Electroproduction

Abstract

Recent measurements from Jefferson Lab show significant beam single spin asymmetries in deep inelastic scattering. The asymmetry is due to interference of longitudinal and transverse photoabsorption amplitudes which have different phases induced by the final-state interaction between the struck quark and the target spectators. We developed a dynamical model for a single-spin beam asymmetry in deep-inelastic scattering. Our results are consistent with the experimentally observed magnitude of this effect. We conclude that similar mechanisms involving quark orbital angular momentum (`Sivers effect') are responsible for both target and beam single-spin asymmetries.