The cross-sections for the production of single charged and neutral intermediate vector bosons were measured using integrated luminosities of 52 pb^{-1} and 154 pb^{-1} collected by the DELPHI experiment at centre-of-mass energies of 182.6 GeV and 188.6 GeV, respectively. The cross-sections for the reactions were determined in limited kinematic regions. The results found are in agreement with the Standard Model predictions for these channels.

Measurements of the trilinear gauge boson couplings WWgamma and WWZ are presented using the data taken by DELPHI in 1998 at a centre-of-mass energy of 189 GeV and combined with DELPHI data at 183 GeV. Values are determined for Delta(g_1^Z) and Delta(kappa_gamma), the differences of the WWZ charge coupling and of the WWgamma dipole coupling from their Standard Model values, and for lambda_gamma, the WWgamma quadrupole coupling. A measurement of the magnetic dipole and electric quadrupole moment of the W is extracted from the results for Delta(kappa_gamma) and lambda_gamma. The study uses data from the final states jjlv, jjjj, lX, jjX and gammaX, where j represents a quark jet, l an identified lepton and X missing four-momentum. The observations are consistent with the predictions of the Standard Model.

DELPHI results are presented on the inclusive production of the neutral mesons ρ 0 , f 0 (980), f 2 (1270), K ∗0 2 (1430) and f ′ 2 (1525) in hadronic Z 0 decays. They are based on about 2 million multihadronic events collected in 1994 and 1995, using the particle identification capabilities of the DELPHI Ring Imaging Cherenkov detectors and measured ionization losses in the Time Projection Chamber. The total production rates per hadronic Z 0 decay have been determined to be: 1.19±0.10 for ρ 0 ; 0.164±0.021 for f 0 (980); 0.214±0.038 for f 2 (1270); 0.073±0.023 for K ∗0 2 (1430) ; and 0.012±0.006 for f ′ 2 (1525). The total production rates for all mesons and differential cross-sections for the ρ 0 , f 0 (980) and f 2 (1270) are compared with the results of other LEP experiments and with models.

The cross-section for the process e + e − → W + W − has been measured with the data sample collected by DELPHI at an average centre-of-mass energy of 182.65 GeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 53 pb −1 . Based on the 770 events selected as WW candidates, the cross-section for the doubly resonant process σ(e + e − →W + W − )=15.86 ±0.69 (stat) ±0.26 (syst) pb has been measured and found to be in good agreement with the Standard Model expectation. The branching fractions of the W decay were also measured. From these a value of the CKM mixing matrix element |V cs |=0.985±0.073 (stat) ±0.025 (syst) was derived. Our previously published WW cross-section measurements and the derived measurement of m W have been revised and updated with the present cross-section measurement to yield m W =80.49±0.43 (stat) ±0.09( syst )±0.03( LEP ) GeV /c 2 .

Data collected at the Z resonance using the DELPHI detector at LEP are used to determine the charged hadron multiplicity in gluon and quark jets as a function of a transverse momentum-like scale. The colour factor ratio, \cacf, is directly observed in the increase of multiplicities with that scale. The smaller than expected multiplicity ratio in gluon to quark jets is understood by differences in the hadronization of the leading quark or gluon. From the dependence of the charged hadron multiplicity on the opening angle in symmetric three-jet events the colour factor ratio is measured to be: C_A/C_F = 2.246 \pm 0.062 (stat.) \pm 0.080 (syst.) \pm 0.095 (theo.)

A measurement of the forward--backward asymmetry of $e^{+}e^{-} \to c\bar{c}$ and $e^{+}e^{-} \to b\bar{b}$ on the $Z$ resonance is performed using about 3.5 million hadronic $Z$ decays collected by the DELPHI detector at LEP in the years 1992 to 1995. The heavy quark is tagged by the exclusive reconstruction of several $D$ meson decay modes. The forward--backward asymmetries for $c$ and $b$ quarks at the $Z$ resonance are determined to be: \[ \renewcommand{\arraystretch}{1.6} \begin{array}{rcr@{}l} \Afbc(\sqrt{s} = 91.235 {\rm GeV}) &=& &0.0659 \pm 0.0094 (stat) \pm 0.0035 (syst) \Afbb (\sqrt{s} = 91.235 {\rm GeV}) &=& &0.0762 \pm 0.0194 (stat) \pm 0.0085 (syst) \Afbc(\sqrt{s} = 89.434 {\rm GeV}) &=&-&0.0496 \pm 0.0368 (stat) \pm 0.0053 (syst) \Afbb(\sqrt{s} = 89.434 {\rm GeV}) &=& &0.0567 \pm 0.0756 (stat) \pm 0.0117 (syst) \Afbc(\sqrt{s} = 92.990 {\rm GeV}) &=& &0.1180 \pm 0.0318 (stat) \pm 0.0062 (syst) \Afbb(\sqrt{s} = 92.990 {\rm GeV}) &=& &0.0882 \pm 0.0633 (stat) \pm 0.0122 (syst) \end{array} \] The combination of these results leads to an effective electroweak mixing angle of: SINEFF = 0.2332 \pm 0.0016

The total and the differential cross-sections for the reaction e + e − → γγ ( γ ) have been measured with the DELPHI detector at LEP at centre-of-mass energies from 130 to 183 GeV for an integrated luminosity of 78.19 pb −1 . The results agree with the QED predictions. The lower limits (obtained including previously published results at the Z 0 energies) on the QED cutoff parameters are Λ + >253 GeV and Λ − >225 GeV and the lower bound on the mass of an excited electron with an effective coupling constant λ γ =1 is 231 GeV/ c 2 . All the limits are at the 95% confidence level.

The production of single photons has been studied in the reaction e+e- -> gamma + invisible particles at centre-of-mass energies of 183 GeV and 189 GeV. A previously published analysis of events with multi-photon final states accompanied by missing energy has been updated with 189 GeV data. The data were collected with the DELPHI detector and correspond to integrated luminosities of about 51 pb^{-1} and 158 pb^{-1} at the two energies. The number of light neutrino families is measured to be 2.84 +/- 0.15(stat) +/- 0.14(syst). The absence of an excess of events beyond that expected from Standard Model processes is used to set limits on new physics as described by supersymmetric and composite models. A limit on the gravitational scale is also determined.

A sample of 2.2 million hadronic Z decays, selected from the data recorded by the Delphi detector at LEP during 1994-1995 was used for an improved measurement of inclusive distributions of pi+, K+ and p and their antiparticles in gluon and quark jets. The production spectra of the individual identified particles were found to be softer in gluon jets compared to quark jets, with a higher multiplicity in gluon jets as observed for inclusive charged particles. A significant proton enhancement in gluon jets is observed indicating that baryon production proceeds directly from colour objects. The maxima, xi^*, of the xi-distributions for kaons in gluon and quark jets are observed to be different.

The branching ratio for the leptonic decay of charged B mesons ( B − →τ − ν ̄ τ ) has been measured using selected leptonic τ − →ℓ − ν τ ν ̄ ℓ and hadronic τ − → ν τ X decays in Z → b b ̄ decays recorded by DELPHI at LEP1 in 1992–1995. The result, BR ( B − →τ − ν ̄ τ )<1.1×10 −3 at the 90% confidence level, is consistent with standard model expectations and puts a constraint on the ratio tan β / M H ± <0.46 (GeV/ c 2 ) −1 in the framework of models with two Higgs doublets (type II Higgs doublet model). From the missing energy distribution in Z → b b ̄ decays without identified leptons, the b →τ ν ̄ τ X branching ratio has been measured in the hadronic channel τ → ν τ X′. The result, BR ( b →τ ν ̄ τ X )=(2.19±0.24 ( stat )±0.39 ( syst ))% , is consistent with the Standard Model prediction and with previous experimental measurements.