Heavy-quark correlations in deep-inelastic electroproduction

Abstract

We have completed the next-to-leading order perturbative QCD corrections to the virtual-photon exclusive differential cross sections for heavy quark production in deep-inelastic electron-proton scattering, i.e. $e + P \rightarrow Q + \overline{Q} + X$. Using these results, we have computed distributions which are sensitive to correlations among the heavy quark, the heavy antiquark, and the associated jet. Some predictions for charm and bottom heavy quark production at the electron-proton collider HERA are presented.