Hadron--deuteron scattering at 50 GeV. [Glauber theory, differential cross sections

Abstract

The forward scattering of ..pi../sup +/, ..pi../sup -/, and protons on deuterons and protons was measured with a single arm spectrometer at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. The energy was 50 GeV and the invariant 4-momentum transfer range was .06 < /t/ < .32 (GeV/c)/sup 2/ for ..pi../sup +/ and p, and .06 < /t/ < .50 for ..pi../sup -/. The missing mass, determined by the spectrometer, selected proton elastic and deuteron elastic-plus-breakup scattering, rejecting particle and resonance production events. The measured proton and deuteron differential cross sections were analyzed in the context of the Glauber Theory of deuteron elastic-plus-breakup scattering and a neutron elastic differential cross section was extracted. The theory and analysis were tested by comparing the ..pi../sup +/n cross section extracted from the ..pi../sup +/d and n/sup +/p data with the ..pi../sup -/p data; by I-spin symmetry the ..pi../sup +/n cross section must equal the ..pi../sup -/p. The same test was done for ..pi../sup -/n. The proton--neutron elastic differential cross section was then extracted from the pd and pp data. The theory and the data were not found to be consistent within the random errors. Systematic errors are probably the cause; several possible systematic errors are discussed. Also an attempt to use recoil particle detectors to extract the deuteron elastic and the neutron cross sections is reported.