Real-time description of parton-hadron conversion and confinement dynamics

A new approach to the dynamics of parton-hadron conversion and confinement is presented based on a kinetic multi-particle description in real time and complete phase-space, which combines perturbative QCD at high energies and an effective field theory approach to hadrons at low energies. The prototype reaction e+e- → hadrons is discussed as an example. The main results are: (i) the local conversion of partons to hadronic clusters occurs very rapidly, but the global time scale for the transition of all parts of the system is comparatively long; (ii) features of the perturbative parton evolution are projected unscathed onto hadron distributions; (iii) the Bose enhancement of same-sign pions may provide a sensitive probe of the details of the space-time evolution. (K.A.)