Charged particle multiplicity distributions in pp, π±p and K±p scattering and the approximately normal distribution

Abstract

It is shown that the approximately normal distribution for the production of j negatively charged particles describes the charged particle multiplicity data in pi +or-p, K+or-p and pp scattering with laboratory momenta in the range 5-300 GeV/c. Energy dependent parametrizations of the pp and pi -p data are shown to be successful, and to become independent of the initial state as energy becomes large. It is also demonstrated that, if Q(j)=ln( sigma (j)/ sigma (j-1)) is plotted as a function of available energy, universal curves result. These are used to predict K-p multiplicity distributions at a laboratory momentum of 150 GeV/c. A brief discussion of the importance of diffractive scattering is included.