Publication
Title
Exclusive $\rho^{0}$ meson photoproduction with a leading neutron at HERA
Author
Abstract
 A first measurement is presented of exclusive photoproduction of rho(0) mesons associated with leading neutrons at HERA. The data were taken with the H1 detector in the years 2006 and 2007 at a centre-of-mass energy of root s = 319 GeV and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 1.16 pb(-1). The rho(0) mesons with transverse momenta p(T) < 1 GeV are reconstructed from their decays to charged pions, while leading neutrons carrying a large fraction of the incoming proton momentum, x(L) > 0.35, are detected in the Forward Neutron Calorimeter. The phase space of the measurement is defined by the photon virtuality Q(2) < 2 GeV2, the total energy of the photon-proton system 20 < W-gamma p < 100 GeVand the polar angle of the leading neutron theta(n) < 0.75 mrad. The cross section of the reaction gamma p -> rho(0)n pi(+) is measured as a function of several variables. The data are interpreted in terms of a double peripheral process, involving pion exchange at the proton vertex followed by elastic photoproduction of a rho(0) meson on the virtual pion. In the framework of one-pion-exchange dominance the elastic cross section of photon-pion scattering, sigma(el)(gamma pi(+) -> rho(0)pi(+)), is extracted. The value of this cross section indicates significant absorptive corrections for the exclusive reaction gamma p -> rho(0)n pi(+).
Language
English
Source (journal)
European physical journal : C : particles and fields. - Berlin
Publication
Berlin : 2016
ISSN
1434-6044
Volume/pages
76:1(2016), 21 p.
Article Reference
41
ISI
000370646800001
Medium
E-only publicatie
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
UAntwerpen
 Faculty/Department Research group Publication type Subject Affiliation Publications with a UAntwerp address