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.].
Using a data sample with a total integrated luminosity of 10.0 pb$^{-1}$ collected at center-of-mass energies of 2.6, 3.07 and 3.65 GeV with BESII, cross sections for $e^+e^-$ annihilation into hadronic final states ($R$ values) are measured with statistical errors that are smaller than 1%, and systematic errors that are about 3.5%. The running strong interaction coupling constants $\alpha_s^{(3)}(s)$ and $\alpha_s^{(5)}(M_Z^2)$ are determined from the $R$ values.
The strong coupling alpha_s(M_Z^2) has been measured using hadronic decays of Z^0 bosons collected by the SLD experiment at SLAC. The data were compared with QCD predictions both at fixed order, O(alpha_s^2), and including resummed analytic formulae based on the next-to-leading logarithm approximation. In this comprehensive analysis we studied event shapes, jet rates, particle correlations, and angular energy flow, and checked the consistency between alpha_s(M_Z^2) values extracted from these different measures. Combining all results we obtain alpha_s(M_Z^2) = 0.1200 \pm 0.0025(exp.) \pm 0.0078(theor.), where the dominant uncertainty is from uncalculated higher order contributions.
We have measured the total e + e − hadronic annihilation cross section at the center of mass energies between 50.0 GeV and 61.4 GeV with the TOPAZ detector at TRISTAN. The full electroweak radiative corrections (up to O(α 3 )) were applied to the data which were analysed together with the published data from PEP and PETRA. We then determined the standard model parameters, M z (the mass of the Z), sin w 2 θ (the Weinberg angle) and Λ MS (the QCD scale parameter) by comparing the experimental data with the prediction of the standard model. The best fit values are M z = 89.2 −1.8 +2.1 GeV/c 2 , sin 2 θ w = 0.233 −0.025 +0.035 and Λ MS = 0.327 −0.206 +0.275 GeV. A constraint is obtained on the heavy top quark mass through the radiative corrections if we take the SLC value of M z (91.1 GeV / c 2 ).
We accumulated e + e − annihilations into multi-hadrons at CM energies between 54.0 and 61.4 GeV with the VENUS detector at TRISTAN. Measured R -ratios are consistent with the standard model using the Z-boson mass; 91.1 GeV/ c 2 . Using two new observables, we searched for a planar four-jet and other multi-jet events resulting from the decay of a charge — 1 3 e b ' quark. Having observed no positive signals, we excluded b' masses between 19.4 and 28.2 GeV/ c 2 with a 95% confidence level, regardless of branching into charged current and loop-induced flavor-changing neutral current decay, including a possible Higgs decay process. The charge + 2 3 e top quark was excluded below f30.2 GeV/ c 2 .
Measurements of the charged multiplicities for hadron production in e + e − annihilation in the center of mass energy range 9–32 GeV have been made. The average charged multiplicity has an energy dependence much stronger than ln s and similar to that reported for pp collisions. Quantitative differences are observed in the magnitude of both the average multiplicity 〈 n ch 〉 and the dispersion D ch for e + e − and pp interactions at the same center of mass energy. 〈 n ch 〉 and the ratio 〈 n ch / D ch in e + e − annihilations are significantly larger than in pp collisions and are found to be in overall agreement with QCD predictions. KNO scaling is seen to be satisfied.
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.
The total cross section for electron-positron annihilation into three or more hadrons has been measured for centre of mass energies between 1.4 and 2.0 GeV. The data were obtained at ADONE by the BB̄ experiment.
We report on the results of the study of e + e − collisions at the highest PETRA energy of √ s = 31.57 GeV, using the 4π sr, electromagnetic and calorimetric detector Mark J. Based on 88 hadron events, and an integrated luminosity of 243 nb −1 we obtain R = σ (e + e − → hadrons)/ σ (e + e − → μ + μ − ) = 4.0 ± 0.5 (statistical) ± 6 (systematic). The R value, the measured thrust distribution and average spherocity show no evidence for the production of new quark flavors.
We have performed a search for narrow resonances in the center of mass energy range from 29.90 to 31.46 GeV using the e + e − storage ring PETRA at DESY. We present the total cross section for hadron production and an upper limit for resonance production, indicating that no bound state of charge- 2 3 quarks exists in this energy range.