Double parton correlations in constituent quark models

Double parton correlations, having effects on the double parton scattering processes occurring in high-energy hadron-hadron collisions, for example at the LHC, are studied in the valence quark region by means of constituent quark models. In this framework, two particle correlations are present without any additional prescription, at variance with what happens, for example, in independent particle models, such as the MIT bag model in its simplest version. From the present analysis, conclusions similar to the ones obtained recently in a modified version of the bag model can be drawn: correlations in the longitudinal momenta of the active quarks are found to be sizable, while those in transverse momentum are much smaller. However, the framework used allows us to understand clearly the dynamical origin of the correlations. In particular, it is shown that the small size of the correlations in transverse momentum is a model-dependent result, which would not occur if models with sizable quark orbital angular momentum were used to describe the proton. Our analysis permits us, therefore, to clarify the dynamical origin of the double parton correlations and to establish which, among the features of the results, are model independent. The possibility of testing the studied effects experimentally is discussed.