We have studied D* production mechanisms using data from a photoproduction experiment at the Fermilab Tagged Photon Spectrometer. A large sample of charged D*’s was selected via the clean signature of the cascade decay D*→D0π+ and subsequently D0→K−π+ or D0→K−π+π0. The cross section for the process γp→(D*++anything)p at an average energy of 105 GeV was measured to be 88±32 nb. Only (11±7)% of D*’s were found to be consistent with being accompanied solely by a D¯* or a D¯; the remaining events contain additional particles. The distribution of the production angle of the D* in the photon-fragmentation-system center of mass is strongly anisotropic and consistent with the form f(θ*)=cos4θ*. We set a limit on the associated-production-process cross section σ(γp→(D¯*−+anything)Λc) x)<60 nb (90% C.L.).
Inelastic and elastic $J/\psi$ photoproduction on hydrogen are investigated at a mean energy of 105 GeV. The inelastic cross section with $E_{\psi} / E_{\gamma}$ < 0.9 is significantly lower than the corresponding result for muoproduction on iron targets, but is consistent with a second-order perturbative QCD calculation.
The elastic photoproduction cross sections for ρ and ϕ mesons from protons have been measured from 30 to 180 GeV. The energy dependences agree well with predictions made by using vector-meson dominance and an additive quark model. The ρ cross section is approximately constant with energy while the ϕ cross section rises from 0.5 to 0.7 μb with increasing energy.
Elastic ω-meson photoproduction on protons has been measured from 46 to 180 GeV. The cross section is approximately constant with photon energy and averages 1.10 ± 0.08 μb. The t dependence of the differential cross section is consistent with A exp(bt), where b=8.4±0.7 GeV−2. The photon-omega coupling constant, obtained from a normalization of hadron elastic-scattering cross sections to the photoproduction data of this experiment (with use of vector-meson dominance and an additive quark model), is γω24π=5.4±0.4.
We report the result of a brief experiment to measure the cross section for photoproduction of Jψ(3100). At a mean energy of 55 GeV we find this cross section per nucleon to be 37.5 ± 8.2 (statistical) ± 4 (systematic) nb. The result establishes the previously indicated rise in Jψ photoproduction on protons above 20 GeV and suggests that the rise has occurred by 55 GeV.
The photon total cross section on protons has been measured with high precision in the Fermilab tagged-photon beam for photon energies from 18 to 185 GeV. The cross section decreases to a broad minimum near 40 GeV, and then rises by about 4 μb over the remainder of the range. A ρ+ω+ϕ vector-dominance model (normalized to low-energy data) falls below the high-energy results by 2 to 6 μb, suggesting a contribution from charm-anticharm states.
We have measured total hadronic photoproduction cross sections on carbon, copper, and lead. Tagged-photon energies ranged from 20 to 185 GeV for copper and from 45 to 82 GeV for carbon and lead. The energy and A dependence of shadowing were computed by comparing these results to the hydrogen cross section as measured nearly simultaneously with the same apparatus. We observed somewhat more shadowing than did most experiments at lower photon energies.
Using the Primakoff formalism, we have extracted the radiative decay width of the A + 2 (1310) produced in coherent interactions of 200 GeV/ c π + mesons in nuclear targets. The width obtained is 295 ± 60 keV, a value consistent with quark-model predictions.
Using the Primakoff formalism, we have extracted the radiative decay width of the K ∗+ (1430) produced in coherent interactions of 200 GeV/ c K + mesons in nuclear targets. The width obtained is 240 ± 45 keV, a value reasonably consistent with quark-model predictions.
Coherent production of Kπ systems observed in the excitation of 200-GeV/c positive kaons on nuclear targets has been analyzed, including both electromagnetic and strong contributions, to yield a new value for the radiative width for the process K*+(890)→K+γ of 51 ± 5 keV.