NONVANISHING TENSOR POLARIZATION OF SEA QUARKS IN POLARIZED DEUTERONS

We show how the dependence of the diffractive nuclear shadowing and of the nuclear excess of pions on the deuteron spin alignment leads to a substantial tensor polarization of sea partons in the deuteron. The c orresponding tensor structure function b(2)(x, Q(2)) rises towards sma ll x and we predict the about one per cent tensor asymmetry A(2)(x, Q( 2)) = b(2)(x, Q(2))/F-2d(x, Q(2)) which by almost two orders in magnit ude exceeds the effect evaluated earlier in the impulse approximation. We show that the integral integral(0)(1) dx b(1)(x, Q(2)) diverges, w hich implies that the sum rule integral(0)(1) dx b(1)(x, Q(2)) = 0 sug gested by Close and Kumano does not exist. We comment on the impact of tensor polarization on the determination of the vector spin structure function g(1d)(x, Q(2)) for the deuteron. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B .V.