This letter describes a measurement of one of the anomalous triple gauge boson couplings using the first data recorded by the OPAL detector at LEP2. A total of 28 W-pair candidates have been selected for an integrated luminosity of 9.89±0.06 pb −1 recorded at a centre-of-mass energy of 161 GeV. We use these data to place constraints upon the coupling parameter α W φ . We analyse the predicted variation of the total cross-section for all observed channels and the distribution of kinematic variables in the semileptonic decay channels. We measure α W φ to be −0.61 −0.61 0.73 ±0.35, which is consistent with the Standard Model expectation of zero.
The production of c and b quarks in gamma-gamma collisions is studied with the L3 detector at LEP with 410 pb^-1 of data, collected at centre-of-mass energies from 189 GeV to 202 GeV. Hadronic final states containing c and b quarks are identified by detecting electrons or muons from their semileptonic decays. The cross sections sigma(e+e- -> e+e- c c~ X) and sigma(e+e- -> e+e- b b~ X) are measured and compared to next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculations. The cross section of b production is measured in gamma-gamma collisions for the first time. It is in excess of the QCD prediction by a factor of three.
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 .
New results on the multihadron production by electron and positron beams colliding with a total energy of up to 3 GeV are reported. Disregarding possible kaon final states, the ratio σ mh / σ μμ of the total multihadron cross-section to the point-like cross section for process e + e − → μ + μ − has an average value of 1.58 ± 0.25 in the energy interval 2.6–3.0 GeV. The average charged multiplicity over this energy range is 〈 n c 〉 = 2.9 ± 0.3.
The inclusive production of D*+- mesons in photon-photon collisions has been measured using the OPAL detector at LEP at e+e- centre-of-mass energies of 183 and 189GeV. The D* mesons are reconstructed in their decay to D0pi+ with the D0 observed in the two decay modes Kpi+ and Kpi+pi-pi+. After background subtraction, 100.4+-12.6(stat) D*+- mesons have been selected in events without observed scattered beam electron ("anti-tagged") and 29.8+-5.9 (stat) D*+- mesons in events where one beam electron is scattered into the detector ("single-tagged"). Direct and single-resolved events are studied separately. Differential cross-sections as functions of the D* transverse momentum p_t and pseudorapidity \eta are presented in the kinematic region 2<p_t<12GeV and \eta<1.5. They are compared to next-to-leading order (NLO) perturbative QCD calculations. The total cross-section for the process (e+e- to e+e-ccbar), where the charm quarks are produced in the collision of two quasi-real photons, is measured to be 842+-97(stat)+-75(syst)+-196(extrapolation)pb. A first measurement of the charm structure function F2 of the photon is performed in the kinematic range 0.0014<x<0.87 and 5<Q^2<100 GeV^2, and the result is compared to a NLO perturbative QCD calculation.