One-loop weak corrections to the b(b)over-bar cross section at TeV energy hadron colliders

We investigate one-loop weak corrections to the production cross section of two b-jets at Tevatron and Large Hadron Collider (LHC). We establish that they are small at inclusive level but dominant in exclusive observables that have a non-trivial dependence on the helicity structure of the hard subprocesses. Such effects can serve as a test of the Standard Model (SM) and, conversely, they should be taken into account in future experimental analyses aiming at extracting possible signals of new physics. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.