Matrix element corrections in the Pythia8 parton shower in the context of matched simulations at next-to-leading order

Abstract We discuss the role of matrix element corrections (MEC) to parton showers in the context of MC@NLO-type matchings for processes that feature unstable resonances, where MEC are liable to result in double-counting issues, and are thus generally not employed. By working with Pythia8, we show t...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Stefano Frixione, Simone Amoroso, Stephen Mrenna
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2023-10-01
Series:European Physical Journal C: Particles and Fields
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-023-12154-x
Description
Summary:Abstract We discuss the role of matrix element corrections (MEC) to parton showers in the context of MC@NLO-type matchings for processes that feature unstable resonances, where MEC are liable to result in double-counting issues, and are thus generally not employed. By working with Pythia8, we show that disabling all MEC is actually unnecessary in computations based on the narrow-width approximation, and we propose alternative MEC settings which, while still avoiding double counting, allow one to include hard-recoil effects in the simulations of resonance decays. We illustrate our findings by considering $$t\bar{t}$$ t t ¯ production at the LHC, and by comparing MadGraph5-aMC@NLO predictions with those of POWHEG-BOX and standalone Pythia8.
ISSN:1434-6052