The production rates for 2-, 3-, 4- and 5-jet hadronic final states have been measured with the DELPHI detector at the e + e − storage ring LEP at centre of mass energies around 91.5 GeV. Fully corrected data are compared to O(α 2 s ) QCD matrix element calculations and the QCD scale parameter Λ MS is determined for different parametrizations of the renormalization scale ω 2 . Including all uncertainties our result is α s ( M 2 Z )=0.114±0.003[stat.]±0.004[syst.]±0.012[theor.].
An updated analysis using about 1.5 million events recorded at $\sqrt{s} = M_Z$ with the DELPHI detector in 1994 is presented. Eighteen infrared and collinear safe event shape observables are measured as a function of the polar angle of the thrust axis. The data are compared to theoretical calculations in ${\cal O} (\alpha_s^2)$ including the event orientation. A combined fit of $\alpha_s$ and of the renormalization scale $x_{\mu}$ in $\cal O(\alpha_s^2$) yields an excellent description of the high statistics data. The weighted average from 18 observables including quark mass effects and correlations is $\alpha_s(M_Z^2) = 0.1174 \pm 0.0026$. The final result, derived from the jet cone energy fraction, the observable with the smallest theoretical and experimental uncertainty, is $\alpha_s(M_Z^2) = 0.1180 \pm 0.0006 (exp.) \pm 0.0013 (hadr.) \pm 0.0008 (scale) \pm 0.0007 (mass)$. Further studies include an $\alpha_s$ determination using theoretical predictions in the next-to-leading log approximation (NLLA), matched NLLA and $\cal O(\alpha_s^2$) predictions as well as theoretically motivated optimized scale setting methods. The influence of higher order contributions was also investigated by using the method of Pad\'{e} approximants. Average $\alpha_s$ values derived from the different approaches are in good agreement.
The hadronic fragmentation functions of the various quark flavours and of gluons are measured in a study of the inclusive hadron production from Z 0 decays with the DELPHI detector and are compared with the fragmentation functions measured elsewhere at energies between 14 GeV and 91 GeV. A large scaling violation is observed, which is used to extract the strong coupling constant from a fit using a numerical integration of the second order DGLAP evolution equations. The result is α s ( M Z ) = 0.124 −0.007 +0.006 (exp) ± 0.009(theory) where the first error represents the experimental uncertainty and the second error is due to the factorization and renormalization scale dependence.
Infrared and collinear safe event shape distributions and their mean values are determined using the data taken at five different centre of mass energies above M Z with the DELPHI detector at LEP. From the event shapes, the strong coupling α s is extracted in O ( α s 2 ), NLLA and a combined scheme using hadronisation corrections evaluated with fragmentation model generators as well as using an analytical power ansatz. Comparing these measurements to those obtained at M Z , the energy dependence (running) of α s is accessible. The logarithmic energy slope of the inverse strong coupling is measured to be d α −1 s d log (E cm ) =1.39±0.34( stat )±0.17( syst ) , in good agreement with the QCD expectation of 1.27.
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