q_T Slicing with Multiple Jets

Modern collider phenomenology requires unprecedented precision for the theoretical predictions, for which slicing techniques provide an essential tool at next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in the strong coupling. The most popular slicing variable is based on the transverse momentum q_T of a color-singlet final state, but its generalization to final states with jets is known to be very difficult. Here we propose two generalizations of q_T that can be used for jet processes, providing proof of concept with an NLO slicing for pp→2 jets. We present factorization formulas that enable our approach to NNLO, calculate the NNLO collinear-soft function, and demonstrate slicing at this order for e⁺e^-→2 jets. One of these generalizations of qT only applies to planar Born processes, such as p+p→2 jets, but offers a dramatic simplification of the soft function. We also discuss how our approach can directly be extended to obtain predictions for the fragmentation of hadrons. This presents a promising path for high-precision QCD calculations with multijet final states.