We report a high-precision measurement of the ratio R of the total cross section for e+e−→hadrons to that for e+e−→μ+μ−, at a center-of-mass energy of 29.0 GeV using the MAC detector. The result is R=3.96±0.09. This value of R is used to determine a value of the strong coupling constant αs of 0.23±0.06, nearly independent of fragmentation models. Two different analysis methods having quite different event-selection criteria have been used and the results are in agreement. Particular attention has been given to the study of systematic errors. New higher-order QED calculations are used for the luminosity determination and the acceptance for hadrons.

Measurements of energy-energy correlations in hadronic final states produced in e + e − annihilation at c.m. energies between 7.7 and 31.6 GeV are presented. The data are compared to perturbative QCD predictions. Good qualitative agreement above 20 GeV c.m. energy is found. The importance of non-perturbative effects is discussed, as well as the detailed behaviour of the correlation near 180°.

e + e − annihilation into hadrons was studied at CM energies between 39.8 and 45.2 GeV and a search was made for new heavy quarks. No evidence was found for the existence of a narrow state excluding the possible existence of the lowest vector toponium state in this mass range. A search for continuum production of heavy quarks led to lower mass limits for new quarks of 22.0 GeV ( e Q = 2 3 ) and 21.0 GeV ( e Q = 1 3 ). Quarks are found to be pointlike, the corresponding mass parameter being larger than 288 GeV. A fit of the QCD and the electroweak contributions to R = σ tot / σ μμ yielded sin 2 θ W = 0.30 −0.07 +0.23 .

The ration R = σ (e + e − → hadrons) σ μμ was measured between 12.0 and 36.7 GeV c.m. energy W with a precision of typically ± 5.2%. R is found to be constant with an average R = 4.01 ± 0.03 (stat) ± (syst.) for W ⩾ 14 GeV. Quarks are found to be point-like, the mass parameter describing a possible quark form-factor being larger than 186 GeV. Fits including QCD corrections and a weak neutral-current contribution are presented.

The total hadronic cross section in e + e − annihilation has been measured at s = 57.77 GeV using 290 pb −1 data sample collected with the VENUS detector at KEK TRISTAN. The cross section obtained is 140.3 ±1.8 pb for s ′/ s ≥0.5, where s ′ is the square of the invariant mass of the final state hadrons. The present result together with the recent results from the LEP collaborations is used to determine the hadronic γ − Z 0 interference parameter, j tot had , to be 0.196±0.083. The result is in good agreement with the Standard Model prediction of 0.220.

With a PETRA energy scan in ≤30-MeV steps, the continuum production of open top quark up to 38.54 GeV is excluded. Over regions of energy scan from 29.90 to 38.63 GeV limits are set on the product of hadronic branching ratio and electronic width BhΓee for toponium to be less than 2.0 keV at the 95% confidence level. By a search for flavor-changing neutral currents in b decay, models without a top quark are excluded.

This report reviews the experimental investigation of high energy e + e − interactions by the MARK J collaboration at PETRA, the electron-positron colliding beam accelerator at DESY in Hamburg, Germany. The physics objectives include studies of several purely electromagnetic processes and hadronic final states, which further our knowledge of the nature of the fundamental constituents and of their strong, electromagnetic and weak interactions. Before discussing the physics results, the main features and the principal components of the MARK J detector are discussed in terms of design, function, and performance. Several aspects of the on-line data collection and the off-line analysis are also outlined. Results are presented on tests of quantum electrodynamics using e + e − → e + e − , μ + μ − and τ + τ − , on the measurement of R , the ratio of the hadronic to the point-like muon pair cross section, on the search for new quark flavors, on the discovery of three jet events arising from the radiation of hard noncollinear gluons as predicted by quantum chromodynamics, and on the determination of the strong coupling constant α s .

We use the reaction e+e−→hadrons, in the Mark J detector at the DESY electron-positron collider PETRA, to determine the hadronic cross section up to 46.78 GeV. The production of a top quark with a charge equal to (2/3) is excluded up to 46.6 GeV with 95% C.L. The observed rise in the cross section at higher energies is consistent with the electroweak prediction for a Z0 mass of 93 GeV. We describe some unusual muon inclusive events.

The ratio R of the total cross section for e+e− annihilation into hadrons to the lowest-order QED cross section for e+e−→μ+μ− has been measured for center-of-mass energies ranging from 50 to 61.4 GeV. If we allow for an overall shift of —4.9%, about 1.5 times our estimated normalization error, the results are consistent with the standard-model predictions.

A precise measurement of the ratio R of the total cross section e+e−→hadrons to the pointlike cross section e+e−→μ+μ− at a center-of-mass energy of 29.0 GeV is presented. The data were taken with the upgraded Mark II detector at the SLAC storage ring PEP. The result is R=3.92±0.05±0.09. The luminosity has been determined with three independent luminosity monitors measuring Bhabha scattering at different angular intervals. Recent calculations of higher-order QED radiative corrections are used to estimate the systematic error due to missing higher-order radiative corrections in the Monte Carlo event generators.

Total and differential K0 corss sections are presented from e+e− collisions at s=29 GeV in the High Resolution Spectrometer detector. K0 and charged-particle distributions are compared in a study of the hadronization of quarks of known flavor. Ecents of the reaction e+e−→cc¯ are tagged by identifying D*'s while uu¯, dd¯, or ss¯ events are tagged through the identification of a charged particle with fractional momentum near 1. Parton-shower models with cluster and string fragmentation are compared with these data. Also, certain particle scaling tests are performed using the quark-flavor tags. In addition, K0 production in two- and three-jet events is compared to these models.

The branching fraction for the decay of the ϒ(1S) into τ paris has been measured to be (3.4±0.4±0.4)%. This result agrees with the previously measured branching ratio of the decay into muon pairs.

We have observed e + e − hadrons at C.M. energies of 13 GeV and 17 GeV at PETRA using the TASSO detector. We find R (13 GeV) = 5.6 ± 0.7 and R (17 GeV) = 4.0 ± 0.7. The additional systematic uncertainty is 20%. Comparing inclusive charged hadron spectra we observe scaling between 5 GeV and 17 GeV for x = p / p beam > 0.2; however the 13 GeV cross section is above the 17 GeV cross section for smaller x . This may be due to copious bb̄ production. The events become increasingly jet like at high energies as evidenced by a shrinking sphericity distribution with increasing energy.

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.

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.

Results on e + e − annihilation into hadrons at c.m. energies between 22 and 31.6 GeV are presented. The data were accumulated with the PLUTO detector at PETRA. The events are dominantly of the two-jet type. The value of the relative hadronic cross section R =3.88 ± 0.22 along with the details of the sphericity and thrust distribution rule out an open (tt̄) channel (Q t = 2 3 ) below 30 GeV. The inclusive muon results support the above conclusion.

The CUSB detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring has been used to measure R=σ(e+e−→hadrons)σ(e+e−→μ+μ−) in the c.m. energy regions between the ϒ′′ and the ϒ′′′, and above the ϒ′′′ up to s=11.6 GeV, with integrated luminosities of 5000 and 2100 nb−1, respectively. No narrow resonances are observed, and limits on the leptonic widths are presented. The average value of R increases by 0.31±0.06 across the flavor threshold.

Using the CLEO detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring, the authors have measured the leptonic branching fractions, Bμμ, of the ϒ(1S), ϒ(2S), and ϒ(3S) to be 2.7±0.3±0.3%, 1.9±1.3±0.5%, and 3.3±1.3±0.7%, respectively. Combining these values of Bμμ with previous measurements of the leptonic widths of these resonances, the authors find the total widths of the ϒ(1S), ϒ(2S), and ϒ(3S) to be 48±4±4, 27±17±6, and 13±4±3 keV.

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 .

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.

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.

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.

We present a study of jet multiplicities based on 37 000 hadronic Z 0 boson decays. From this data we determine the strong coupling constant α s =0.115±0.005 ( exp .) −0.010 +0.012 (theor.) to second order QCD at √ s =91.22GeV.