Buchm\"uller Scaling, the QCD Pomeron, and Tevatron Diffractive Hard Scattering

Abstract

We discuss the observed scaling of the small-x diffractive and total deep-inelastic structure functions at HERA. We argue that the parton interpretation of Buchm\"uller and Hebecker can be understood within QCD as the appearance of the Pomeron in a Super-Critical phase. In diffractive hard scattering, the Pomeron appears as reggeized gluon exchange in a color-compensating background field. The formalism can also be applied to diffractive $W$ production at the Tevatron. If the scaling is a true asymptotic property then it should anticipate the appearance of a further massive sector of QCD and associated asymptotic Critical Pomeron behaviour.