Triple-jet production at large transverse momentum

Aspects of large-$p_T$ multiple-jet production in hadronic collisions are discussed. The possible magnitude and importance of such processes are investigated by making a detailed calculation of the triple-jet cross section in the quark-fusion model. The essential parameters of the model, including an over-all normalization, are known from fits to data of the (two-jet) quark-fusion model. Predictions for the two-pion invariant cross-section are given for various configurations and charge combinations of the pions. Many of these results are experimentally accessible, although they are often comparable with or exceeded by the results of a naive independent-production calculation. The total contribution of the triple-jet process to the large-$p_T$ single-particle yield may not be negligible in the model.