Covariant description of inelastic electron-deuteron scattering: Predictions of the relativistic impulse approximation

Using the covariant spectator theory and the transversity formalism, the unpolarized, coincidence cross section for deuteron electrodisintegration, d(e,e^′p)n, is studied. The relativistic kinematics are reviewed, and simple theoretical formulas for the relativistic impulse approximation (RIA) are derived and discussed. Numerical predictions for the scattering in the high Q² region obtained from the RIA and five other approximations are presented and compared. We conclude that measurements of the unpolarized coincidence cross section and the asymmetry A_φ, to an accuracy that will distinguish between different theoretical models, is feasible over most of the wide kinematic range accessible at Jefferson Lab.