Diffractive photoproduction of D*+/-(2010) mesons was measured with the ZEUS detector at the ep collider HERA, using an integrated luminosity of 78.6 pb^{-1}. The D* mesons were reconstructed in the kinematic range: transverse momentum p_T(D*) > 1.9 GeV and pseudorapidity |eta(D*)| < 1.6, using the decay D*+ -> D0 pi+_s followed by D0 -> K- pi+ (+c.c.). Diffractive events were identified by a large gap in pseudorapidity between the produced hadronic state and the outgoing proton. Cross sections are reported for photon-proton centre-of-mass energies in the range 130 < W < 300 GeV and for photon virtualities Q^2 < 1 GeV^2, in two ranges of the Pomeron fractional momentum x_pom < 0.035 and x_pom < 0.01. The relative contribution of diffractive events to the inclusive D*+/-(2010) photoproduction cross section is about 6%. The data are in agreement with perturbative QCD calculations based on various parameterisations of diffractive parton distribution functions. The results are consistent with diffractive QCD factorisation.
Total cross section integrated over the given kinematic range.
Ratio of diffractive to inclusive D* cross section.
Differential cross sections for diffractive photoproduction of D*+- mesons as a function of X(NAME=POMERON).
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