NEXT-TO-LEADING ORDER QCD ANALYSIS OF POLARIZED DEEP-INELASTIC SCATTERING DATA

We present a next-to-leading order perturbative QCD analysis of world data on the spin dependent structure functions g(l)(p), g(l)(n), and g (l)(d), including the new experimental information on the Q(2) depende nce of g(l)(n). Careful attention is paid to the experimental and theo retical uncertainties. The data constrain the first moments of the pol arized valence quark distributions, but only qualitatively constrain t he polarized sea quark and gluon distributions. The NLO results are us ed to determine the Q(2) dependence of the ratio g(l)/F-l and evolve t he experimental data to a constant Q(2) = 5 GeV2. We determine the fir st moments of the polarized structure functions of the proton and neut ron and find agreement with the Bjorken sum rule. (C) 1997 Published b y Elsevier Science B.V.