Vector Meson Dominance and Vector Meson Production

Abstract

Against a background supported by the three pillars of emergent mass, this contribution challenges the fidelity of vector meson dominance as an instrument for relating the electromagnetic vector-meson (V) production reaction $e+p\to e^{\prime }+V+p$ to the hadronic process $V+p\to V+p$. It also describes a viable reaction model for exclusive photoproduction of light and heavy vector mesons from the proton, which exposes the $q\bar{q}$ content of the photon. That model's successes reveal that it is premature to link extant $V+p\to V+p$ data with, for instance, in-proton gluon distributions, the QCD trace anomaly, or pentaquark production. Improved reaction theory and more precise data are required before the validity of such links can objectively be assessed.

Comments: 8 pages, 5 figures. Summary of an invited presentation at the 19th International Workshop on Meson Physics (MESON2026), Kraków, Poland, 2026 June 25-30