Jet production in deep inelastic scattering for $120<Q~2<3600$GeV$~2$ has been studied using data from an integrated luminosity of 3.2pb$~{-1}$ collected with the ZEUS detector at HERA. Jets are identified with the JADE algorithm. A cut on the angular distribution of parton emission in the $\gamma~*$-parton centre-of-mass system minimises the experimental and theoretical uncertainties in the determination of the jet rates. The jet rates, when compared to ${\cal O}$($\alpha_{s}$~2$) perturbative QCD calculations, allow a precise determination of $\alpha_{s}(Q)$ in three $Q~2$-intervals. The values are consistent with a running of $\alpha_{s}(Q)$, as expected from QCD. Extrapolating to $Q=M_{Z~0}$ yields $\alpha_{s}(M_{Z~0}) = 0.117\pm0.005(stat)~{+0.004}_{-0.005}(syst_{exp}) {\pm0.007}(syst_{theory})$.
2+1 jet rate as a function of ycut the jet algorithm cut-off value. Statistical errors only.
Measured values of Lambda-QCD in the MS Bar scheme and alpha_s as a function of Q**2. The second systematic uncertainty is related to the theoretical uncertainties .
Strong coupling constant alpha_s extrapolated to the Z0 mass.
The relative production ratio of 3-jet events to the total number of hadronic events was studied in e + e − annihilations at centre-of-mass energies between 54 and 61.4 GeV. The QCD scale parameter has been determined to be Λ MS =254 −47 +55 ±56 MeV on the basis of a QCD cascade with the next-to-leading logarithmic approximation.
Data are uncorrected for initial radiation, detector effects, and quark hadronization.
LAMBDA-MSBAR determined from the 3-jet ratio.