Electron-Positron Colliding Beam Experiments

Abstract

Possible experiments with high-energy colliding beams of electrons and positrons are discussed. The role of the proposed two-pion resonance and of the three-pion resonance or bound state is investigated in connection with electron-positron annihilation into pions. The existence of a three-pion bound state would give rise to a very large cross section for annihilation into ${\ensuremath{\pi}}^{0}+\ensuremath{\gamma}$. A discussion of the possible resonances is given based on consideration of the relevant widths as compared to the experimental energy resolution. Annihilation into baryon-antibaryon pairs is investigated and polarization effects arising from the nonreal character of the form factors on the absorptive cut are examined. The density matrix for annihilation into pairs of vector mesons is calculated. A discussion of the limits from unitarity to the annihilation cross sections is given for processes going through the one-photon channel. The cross section for annihilation into pairs of spin-one mesons is rather large. The typical angular correlations at the vector-meson decay are discussed.A neutral weakly interacting vector meson would give rise to a strong resonant peak if it is coupled with lepton pairs. Effects of the local weak interactions are also examined. The explicit relation between the ${e}^{2}$ corrections to the photon propagator due to strong interactions and the cross section for annihilation into strongly interacting particles is given.