In an exposure of the Brookhaven National Laboratory 20-in. hydrogen bubble chamber to a separated π+ beam at π+ momenta of 2.35 BeV/c (center-of-mass energy E*=2.30 BeV), 2.62 BeV/c (E*=2.41 BeV), and 2.90 BeV/c (E*=2.52 BeV), we have observed production of the ω0, ρ0, and η0 mesons. The production of the ω0, ρ0, and η0 is often accompanied by simultaneous production of the N*++. The momentum transfer in ω0 and ρ0 production is characteristic of peripheral collisions and suggests a single-particle exchange for the production mechanism. The decay distributions for the ω0, ρ0, and the ρ+ demonstrate the importance of modifying the single-particle-exchange model to include absorptive effects. An upper limit on the two-π decay of the ω0 is set at 2%. The width of the η0 is found to be less than 10 MeV. Elastic-scattering distributions are presented.
We have studied neutral final states produced in π−p collisions at momenta of 1.71, 1.89, 2.07, 2.27, and 2.46 GeVc, by observing the γ rays emitted. In particular, measurements are presented of (i) π−p→π0n, for which the Regge-pole fit at momenta ≥5.9 GeVc also agrees rather well here; (ii) π−p→η0n, for which the Regge model which fits at higher energies does not agree here; (iii) π−p→π0γn, in which there is some evidence for a diffraction dissociation process as well as ω0-meson production; (iv) π−p→π0π0n, which is dominated by production of N*0(1236)π0 and by peripheral production of pion pairs. In (iv), the former process is found to fit with the same Reggeized ρ-meson exchange model as charge-exchange scattering, while the latter gives indication of the s-wave ππ interaction. An account is given of new techniques, particularly in the data analysis, which were developed in the course of this work.
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