We report a measurement of the e+e−→e+e−pp¯π+π− process with the TPC/Two-Gamma facility at the PEP e+e− storage ring at SLAC. Forty-five pp¯π+π− events were identified in data corresponding to an integrated e+e− luminosity of 142 pb−1. The cross section for γγ→pp¯π+π− is given both as a function of the γγ center-of-mass energy Wγγ, with Wγγ between 2.5 and 5.5 GeV, and as a function of the in variant mass squared q2 of one of the photons, with −q2<7 GeV2. This cross section falls much less rapidly with Wγγ than does the cross section for a similar process, γγ→pp¯. No Δ0Δ¯0 production is observed, and only a small fraction of the events at low Wγγ is consistent with γγ→Δ++Δ¯−−, Δ++p¯π−, or Δ¯−−pπ+. In an expanded search through the same data, four events compatible with either ΛΛ¯(Λ→pπ−) or Σ0Λ¯(Σ0→Λγ) production were found.
The QED processes e^+ e^- -> e^+ e^- \mu^+ \mu^- and e^+ e^- -> e^+ e^- \tau^+ \tau^- are studied with the L3 detector at LEP using an untagged data sample collected at centre-of-mass energies 161 GeV < sqrt{s} < 209 GeV. The tau-pairs are observed through the associated decay of one tau into e\nu\nu and the other into \pi\pi\nu . The cross sections are measured as a function of sqrt{s}. For muon pairs, the cross section of the \gamma\gamma -> \mu^+\mu^- process is also measured as a function of the two-photon centre-of-mass energy for 3 GeV < W_{\gamma\gamma} < 40 GeV. Good agreement is found between these measurements and the O(\alpha^4) QED expectations. In addition, limits on the anomalous magnetic and electric dipole moments of the tau lepton are extracted.
We report a measurement of the reaction γγ→K+K−π+π− in both tagged and untagged events at PEP. The cross section rises with invariant γγ mass to about 15 nb at 2 GeV and falls slowly at higher masses. We find clear evidence for the processes γγ→φπ+π− and γγ→K*0(892)Kπ. Upper limits (95% C.L.) of 1.5 and 5.7 nb in the mass range from 1.7 to 3.7 GeV are obtained for φρ0 and K*0K¯*0 production, respectively.
The two-photon production of the η meson has been observed, and a value has been determined for the two-photon η decay width by a measurement of the cross section σ(e+e−→e+e−η) where η→γγ. The measurement was made with the TPC/Two-Gamma facility at the SLAC e+e− collider PEP, with an accumulated data sample of 64.5 pb−1. The η→γγ events were both triggered and detected by the pole-tip calorimeter. The measured two-photon η decay width is Γη→γγ=0.64±0.14 (statistical) ±0.13 (systematic) keV, in agreement with earlier similarly determined values.
The cross section of the γγ → p p reaction was measured at two-photon center-of-mass energy ( W γγ ) between 2.2 and 3.3 GeV, using the two-photon process at an e + e − collider, TRISTAN. The W γγ dependence of the cross section integrated over a c.m. angular region of | cos θ ∗ | < 0.6 is in good agreement with the previous measurements and the theoreticalv prediction based on diquark model in the high W γγ region.
We report a high-statistics measurement of differential cross sections for the process gamma gamma -> pi^0 pi^0 in the kinematic range 0.6 GeV <= W <= 4.0 GeV and |cos theta*| <= 0.8, where W and theta* are the energy and pion scattering angle, respectively, in the gamma gamma center-of-mass system. Differential cross sections are fitted to obtain information on S, D_0, D_2, G_0 and G_2 waves. The G waves are important above W ~= 1.6 GeV. For W <= 1.6 GeV the D_2 wave is dominated by the f_2(1270) resonance while the S wave requires at least one additional resonance besides the f_0(980), which may be the f_0(1370) or f_0(1500). The differential cross sections are fitted with a simple parameterization to determine the parameters (the mass, total width and Gamma_{gamma gamma}B(f_0 -> pi^0 pi^0)) of this scalar meson as well as the f_0(980). The helicity 0 fraction of the f_2(1270) meson, taking into account interference for the first time, is also obtained.
The hadronic photon structure function $F_2^\gamma(x,Q^2)$ is measured from data taken with the ALEPH detector at LEP. At centre-of-mass energies between
The production of charged hadrons and K_s mesons in the collisions of quasi-real photons has been measured using the OPAL detector at LEP. The data were taken at e+e- centre-of-mass energies of 161 and 172 GeV. The differential cross-sections as a function of the transverse momentum and the pseudorapidity of the charged hadrons and K_s mesons have been compared to the leading order Monte Carlo simulations of PHOJET and PYTHIA and to perturbative next-to-leading order (NLO) QCD calculations. The distributions have been measured in the range 10-125 GeV of the hadronic invariant mass W. By comparing the transverse momentum distribution of charged hadrons measured in gamma-gamma interactions with gamma-proton and meson-proton data we find evidence for hard photon interactions in addition to the purely hadronic photon interactions.
The differential cross sections for the process $\gamma \gamma \to \pi^0 \pi^0$ have been measured in the kinematic range 0.6 GeV $< W < 4.1$ GeV, $|\cos \theta^*|<0.8$ in energy and pion scattering angle, respectively, in the $\gamma\gamma$ center-of-mass system. The results are based on a 223 fb$^{-1}$ data sample collected with the Belle detector at the KEKB $e^+ e^-$ collider. The differential cross sections are fitted in the energy region 1.7 GeV $< W <$ 2.5 GeV to confirm the two-photon production of two pions in the G wave. In the higher energy region, we observe production of the $\chi_{c0}$ charmonium state and obtain the product of its two-photon decay width and branching fraction to $\pi^0\pi^0$. We also compare the observed angular dependence and ratios of cross sections for neutral-pion and charged-pion pair production to QCD models. The energy and angular dependence above 3.1 GeV are compatible with those measured in the $\pi^+\pi^-$ channel, and in addition we find that the cross section ratio, $\sigma(\pi^0\pi^0)/\sigma(\pi^+\pi^-)$, is $0.32 \pm 0.03 \pm 0.05$ on average in the 3.1-4.1 GeV region.
K^+K^- production in two-photon collisions has been studied using a large data sample of 67 fb^{-1} accumulated with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric e^+e^- collider. We have measured the cross section for the process gamma gamma -> K^+ K^- for center-of-mass energies between 1.4 and 2.4 GeV, and found three new resonant structures in the energy region between 1.6 and 2.4 GeV. The angular differential cross sections have also been measured.