On a possibility to determine the sign of the polarized gluon distribution

We investigate the possibility to draw conclusions on the sign of the spin-dependent gluon distribution, ΔG(x,Q2), from existing polarized DIS data. The spin-dependent parton distributions Δuν, Δdν, Δu bar, Δd bar, Δs, and ΔG are considered in the framework of a phenomenological procedure taking into account some assumptions on signs of valence and sea parton distributions motivated by 't Hooft's mechanism of quark-quark interaction induced by instantons. The axial gluon anomaly and data on integral quark contributions to the proton spin, Δu bar, Δd bar, and Δs bar, are also taken into account. Predictions for the x and Q2-dependencies of the polarized proton and neutron structure functions, g1p and g1n, are compared to experimental data. It is shown that the neutron structure function, g1n, is especially sensitive to the sign of ΔG(x,Q2). The results of our analysis supports the conclusion that this sign should be positive. 25 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs