A new method for obtaining a Born cross section using visible cross section data from e+e− colliders

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a new method for obtaining a Born cross section using visible cross section data. It is assumed that the initial state radiation is taken into account in a visible cross section, while in a Born cross section this effect is ommited. Since the equation that connects Born and visible cross sections is an integral equation of the first kind, the problem of finding its numerical solution is ill-posed. Various regularization-based approaches are often used to solve ill-posed problems, since direct methods usually do not lead to an acceptable result. However, in this paper it is shown that a direct method can be successfully used to numerically solve the considered equation under the condition of a small beam energy spread and uncertainty. This naive method is based on finding a numerical solution to the integral equation by reducing it to a system of linear equations. The naive method works well because the kernel of the integral operator is a rapidly decreasing function of the variable x. This property of the kernel leads to the fact that the condition number of the matrix of the system of linear equations is of the order of unity, which makes it possible to neglect the ill-posedness of the problem when the above condition is satisfied. The advantages of the naive method are its model independence and the possibility of obtaining the covariance matrix of a Born cross section in a simple way.It should be noted that there are already a number of methods for obtaining a Born cross section using visible cross section data, which are commonly used in e+e− experiments. However, at least some of these methods have various disadvantages, such as model dependence and relative complexity of obtaining a Born cross section covariance matrix. It should be noted that this paper focuses on the naive method, while conventional methods are hardly covered. The paper also discusses solving the problem using the Tikhonov regularization, so that the reader can better understand the difference between regularized and non-regularized solutions. However, it should be noted that, in contrast to the naive method, regularization methods can hardly be used for precise obtaining of a Born cross section. The reason is that the regularized solution is biased and the covariance matrix of this solution do not represent the correct covariance matrix of a Born cross section.