QCD Corrections to the Amplitude Zero in W Boson Production.

The differential cross-section describing the production of W bosons through the reaction q_1 + | q_2 to W + gamma contains an amplitude zero, whose location is determined by the particular q-| q pair involved in the reaction. The presence of the zero may allow the experimental determination of the magnetic moment of the W boson because the zero exists only if the W has the magnetic moment of a gauge particle. Since the electroweak theory predicts that the W particle is a gauge boson, the measurement of the magnetic moment of the W particle will provide an important test of the model. In this thesis we examine various effects that complicate the experimental observation of the amplitude zero. In particular, we investigate the effects of the Q ^2 dependence of the structure functions, of the transverse momenta of the initial state quarks and of the finite-width of the W boson. We end with an explicit calculation of the order alpha_{rm s} QCD correction.