The production of charmed particles by Sigma- of 340 Gev/c momentum was studied in the hyperon beam experiment WA89 at the CERN-SPS, using the Omega-spectrometer. In two data-taking periods in 1993 and 1994 an integrated luminosity of 1600 microb^-1 on copper and carbon targets was recorded. From the reconstruction of 930 +- 90 charm particle decays in 10 decay channels production cross sections for D, antiD, Ds and Lambdac were determined in the region xF>0. Assuming an A^1 dependence of the cross section on the nucleon number, we calculate a total ccbar production cross section of sigma(x_F > 0) = 5.3+- 0.4(stat)+-1.0(syst)+1.0(Xi_c) microb per nucleon. The last term is an upper limit on the unknown contribution from charmed-strange baryon production.
Fits to the DSIG/DXL and DSIG/DPT**2 distributions in the range XL > 0. Theerrors shown are statistical only.. The fits are of the following form:. DSIG/DXL : Const*(1-X)**N. DSIG/DPT**2 : Const*EXP(-B*PT**2).
The production cross sections for anti-charmed and charmed hadrons in the range XL > 0. The Errors are statistical only.
The total CQUARK+CQUARKBAR cross section in the range XL > obtained as the weighted average of the sum of all the measured contributions to the charmed andanti-charmed hadron production in the previous table. second systematic (DSYS) error is due to the uncertainty in the contribution of XI/C production to the cross section.
CERN experiment WA89 has studied charmed particles produced by a Sigma^- beam at 340 GeV/c on nuclear targets. Production of particles which have light quarks in common with the beam is compared to production of those which do not. Considerable production asymmetries between D^- and D^p, D_s^ and D_s^+ and Lambda_c and Antilambda_c are observed. The results are compared with pion beam data and with theoretical calculations.
The expectation values, and the lower limits, of the measured asymmetries between D+ and D- production. Statistical errors only are presented.
The expectation values, and the lower limits, of the measured asymmetries between D/S+ and D/S- production. Statistical errors only are presented.
The expectation values, and the lower limits, of the measured asymmetries between LAMBDA/C+ and LAMBDA/CBAR- production. Statistical errors only are presented.