The elements of the quark-parton model and its incorporation within the framework of perturbative Quantum Chromodynamics are laid out. The development of the basic concept of quarks as fundamental constituents of matter is traced in considerable detail, emphasizing the interplay of experimental observations and their theoretical interpretation. The relation of quarks to partons, invented by Feynman to explain striking phenomena in deep inelastic scattering of electrons on nucleons, is explained. This is followed by the introduction into the phenomenology of the parton model, which provides the basic means of communication between experimentalists and theorists.
No systematic exposition of the formalism of quantized fields is given, but the essential differences of Quantum Chromodynamics and the more familiar Quantum Electrodynamics are pointed out. The ideas of asymptotic freedom and quark confinement are introduced and the central role played in their derivation by the color degree of freedom are analyzed.
Considerable attention is paid to the physical interpretation of ultraviolet and infrared singularities in QCD, which lead to crucial concepts of the “running” coupling constant and the jet, respectively. Basic equations of QCD–improved quark–parton model are derived and the main features of their solutions discussed.
It is argued that the “pictures” taken by modern detectors provide a compelling evidence for the interpretation of jets as traces of underlying quark–gluon dynamics. Finally, the role of jets as tools in searching for new phenomena is illustrated on several examples of recent important discoveries.