We employ data taken by the JADE and OPAL experiments for an integrated QCD study in hadronic e+e- annihilations at c.m.s. energies ranging from 35 GeV through 189 GeV. The study is based on jet-multiplicity related observables. The observables are obtained to high jet resolution scales with the JADE, Durham, Cambridge and cone jet finders, and compared with the predictions of various QCD and Monte Carlo models. The strong coupling strength, alpha_s, is determined at each energy by fits of O(alpha_s^2) calculations, as well as matched O(alpha_s^2) and NLLA predictions, to the data. Matching schemes are compared, and the dependence of the results on the choice of the renormalization scale is investigated. The combination of the results using matched predictions gives alpha_s(MZ)=0.1187+{0.0034}-{0.0019}. The strong coupling is also obtained, at lower precision, from O(alpha_s^2) fits of the c.m.s. energy evolution of some of the observables. A qualitative comparison is made between the data and a recent MLLA prediction for mean jet multiplicities.
We present an analysis of multiplicity distributions of charged particles produced inZ0 hadronic decays. The results are based on the analysis of 82941 events collected within 100 MeV of theZ0 peak energy with the OPAL detector at LEP. The charged particle multiplicity distribution, corrected for initial-state radiation and for detector acceptance and resolution, was found to have a mean 〈nch〉=21.40±0.02(stat.)±0.43(syst.) and a dispersionD=6.49±0.02(stat.)±0.20(syst.). The shape is well described by the Lognormal and Gamma distributions. A negative binomial parameterisation was found to describe the shape of the multiplicity distribution less well. A comparison with results obtained at lower energies confirms the validity of KNO(-G) scaling up to LEP energies. A separate analysis of events with low sphericity, typically associated with two-jet final states, shows the presence of features expected for models based on a stochastic production mechanism for particles. In all cases, the features observed in the data are well described by the Lund parton shower model JETSET.
The multiplicity distributions of charged particles in restricted rapidity intervals inZ0 hadronic decays measured by the DELPHI detector are presented. The data reveal a shoulder structure, best visible for intervals of intermediate size, i.e. for rapidity limits around ±1.5. The whole set of distributions including the shoulder structure is reproduced by the Lund Parton Shower model. The structure is found to be due to important contributions from 3-and 4-jet events with a hard gluon jet. A different model, based on the concept of independently produced groups of particles, “clans”, fluctuating both in number per event and particle content per clan, has also been used to analyse the present data. The results show that for each interval of rapidity the average number of clans per event is approximately the same as at lower energies.
The production rates for 2-, 3-, 4- and 5-jet hadronic final states have been measured with the DELPHI detector at the e + e − storage ring LEP at centre of mass energies around 91.5 GeV. Fully corrected data are compared to O(α 2 s ) QCD matrix element calculations and the QCD scale parameter Λ MS is determined for different parametrizations of the renormalization scale ω 2 . Including all uncertainties our result is α s ( M 2 Z )=0.114±0.003[stat.]±0.004[syst.]±0.012[theor.].
The total e + e − annihilation onto hadron has been measured at CM energies between 33.00 and 36.72 GeV and between 38.66 and 46.78 GeV in steps of 20 and 30 MeV respectively. The average of the ratio R = σ ( e + e − → hadrons )/ σ is 〈 R 〉=3.85±0.12 and 〈 R 〉=4.04±0.10 for the two energy ranges. The systematic error on 〈 R 〉 is 0.31. Both values are consistent with the expectation for the known coloured quarks u, d, s, c and b. No evidence was found for the production of new quarks. If the largest fluctuation in R is interpreted as a narrow resonance, it corresponds to a product of the electronic width and the hadronic branching ratio Γ ee B had >2.9 keV at the 95% confidence level, well below the value expected for the toponium vector ground state with charge 2 3 e . The observed number of aplanar final states rules out the continuum production of a a new heavy flavour with pointlike cross section up to a CM energy of 45.4 GeV for a quarck charge of 1 3 e . and up to 46.6 GeV for 2 3 e at the 95% confidence level.
The production of Jψ mesons in Z0 decays is studied using 3.6 million hadronic events recorded by the OPAL detector at LEP. The inclusive Z0 to Jψ and b-quark to Jψ branching ratios are measured from the total yield of Jψ mesons, identified from their decays into lepton pairs. The Jψ momentum distribution is used to study the fragmentation of b-quarks. The production rate of ψ′ mesons, identified from their decays into a Jψ and a π+π− pair, is measured as well. The following results are obtained: ${Br(Z^{0}⌝ghtarrow {⤪ J}/ i X)=(3.9pm 0.2pm 0.3)cdot 10^{-3} {⤪ and} ↦op Br(Z^0⌝ghtarrow i ^⌕ime X)=(1.6pm 0.3pm 0.2)cdot 10^{-3}, }$ where the first error is statistical and the second systematic. Finally the Jψ sample is used to reconstruct exclusive b-hadron decays and calculate the corresponding b-hadron branching ratios and masses.
We have measured the total normalized cross section R for the process e + e − → hadrons at centre-of-mass energies between 14.0 and 46.8 GeV based on an integrated luminosity of 60.3 pb −1 . The data are well described by the standard SU(3) c ⊗SU(2) L ⊗U(1) model with the production of the five known quarks. No open production of a sixth quark with charge 2/3 or 1/3 occurs below a centre-of-mass energy of 46.6 or 46.3 GeV, respectively. A fitting procedure which takes the correlations between measurements into account was used to determine the electroweak mixing angle sin 2 θ w and the strong coupling constant α s ( S ) in second-order QCD. We applied this procedure to the CELLO data and in addition included the data from other experiments at PETRA and PEP. Both fits give consistent results. The fit to the combined data yields α s (34 2 GeV 2 ) = 0.165±0.030, and sin 2 θ w = 0.236±0.020. Fixing sin 2 θ w at the world average value of 0.23 yields α s (34 2 GeV 2 ) = 0.169±0.025.
Results on the reaction γγ → π + π − π 0 π 0 are presented. There is clear evidence for correlated ϱ + ϱ − production. The cross section is much lower than for γγ → ϱ 0 ϱ 0 .
Measurements are presented of the inclusive cross section for K ∗ (892) ± production in hadronic decays of the Z 0 using a sample of about half a million events recorded with the OPAL experiment at LEP. Charged K ∗ mesons are reconstructed in the decay channel K 0 S π ± . A mean rate of 0.72±0.02±0.08 K ∗ mesons per hadronic event is found. Comparison of the results with predictions of the JETSET and HERWIG models shows that JETSET overestimates the K ∗± production cross section while HERWIG is consistent with the data.
The cross section for the process e + e − → multihadrons has been measured at the highest PETRA energies. We measure R (the total cross section in units of the point-like e + e - → μ + μ - cross section) to be 2.9 ± 0.7, 4.0 ± 0.5, 4.6 ± 0.4 and 4.2 ± 0.6 at s of 22, 27.7, 30 and 31.6 GeV, respectively. The observed average multiplicity, together with existing low energy data, indicate a rapid increase in multiplicity with increasing energy.