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  • Open Access

Next-to-Leading-Order QCD Predictions for the Nucleon Form Factors

Yong-Kang Huang*, Bo-Xuan Shi†, Yu-Ming Wang‡, and Xue-Chen Zhao§

  • School of Physics, Nankai University, Weijin Road 94, Tianjin 300071, People’s Republic of China

  • *Contact author: huangyongkang@mail.nankai.edu.cn
  • †Contact author: shibx@mail.nankai.edu.cn
  • ‡Contact author: wangyuming@nankai.edu.cn
  • §Contact author: zxc@mail.nankai.edu.cn
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Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 061901 – Published 4 August, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/xz46-8ptk

Abstract

We accomplish for the first time the next-to-leading-order QCD computations of the leading-twist contributions to the Dirac nucleon form factors by applying the hard-collinear factorization theorem rigorously. Our predictions for these baryon form factors indicate that the one-loop perturbative corrections to the hard-gluon-exchange contributions are numerically substantial for a wide range of momentum transfers. Including further the soft nonfactorizable contributions, we then perform the state-of-the-art analysis of the Dirac nucleon form factors, allowing for the most robust determinations of the nucleon distribution amplitudes from the comparison with the experimental data.

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 061901– Published 4 August, 2025
  • Received 4 August 2024
  • Revised 5 May 2025
  • Accepted 2 July 2025
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