We investigate the production of the weak bosons $W^{+}$, $W^{-}$ and $Z$ at the LHC as a function of their rapidity, reconstructed experimentally from their leptonic decay. We show that the measurements provide a powerful tool for constraining the parton distribution functions, as was already the case for the lower energy $p\overline{p}$ collider data. We study the charge asymmetry determining the $u$ and $d$ distribution functions using the reconstructed $W^{+}$, $W^{-}$ rapidities. We also show how the ratio of the $W$ and $Z$ boson rapidity distributions directly probes the charm quark distribution function of the proton.

• Received 4 April 2013

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.88.073013