Inclusive D*± meson and associated dijet production in deep-inelastic scattering at HERA

Abstract

Inclusive D*± production is measured in deep-inelastic ep scattering at HERA with the H1 detector. In addition, the production of dijets in events with a D*± meson is investigated. The analysis covers values of photon virtuality 2 ≤ Q2 ≤ 100 GeV2 and of inelasticity 0.05≤y≤0.7. Differential cross sections are measured as a function of Q2 and x and of various D*± meson and jet observables. Within the experimental and theoretical uncertainties all measured cross sections are found to be adequately described by next-to-leading order (NLO) QCD calculations, based on the photon–gluon fusion process and DGLAP evolution, without the need for an additional resolved component of the photon beyond what is included at NLO. A reasonable description of the data is also achieved by a prediction based on the CCFM evolution of partons involving the kT-unintegrated gluon distribution of the proton.