No Arabic abstract
We have measured the nuclear transparency of the incoherent diffractive $A(e,erho^0)$ process in $^{12}$C and $^{56}$Fe targets relative to $^2$H using a 5 GeV electron beam. The nuclear transparency, the ratio of the produced $rho^0$s on a nucleus relative to deuterium, which is sensitive to $rho A$ interaction, was studied as function of the coherence length ($l_c$), a lifetime of the hadronic fluctuation of the virtual photon, and the four-momentum transfer squared ($Q^2$). While the transparency for both $^{12}$C and $^{56}$Fe showed no $l_c$ dependence, a significant $Q^2$ dependence was measured, which is consistent with calculations that included the color transparency effects.
Color Transparency refers to the vanishing of the hadron-nucleon interaction for hadrons produced inside a nucleus in high momentum exclusive processes. We briefly review the concept behind this unique Quantum Chromo Dynamics phenomenon, the experimental search for its onset and the recent progress made at intermediate energies.
The STAR Ultra Peripheral Collisions program has collected a substantial sample of $rho$ mesons and for the first time at RHIC energies it has been able to extract the distribution of momentum transfer t from diffractive elastic scattering off the Au ion. The resulting diffraction pattern is consistent with coherent scattering off a nuclear object the size of the Au nuclei. Measurements of this nature can offer insights and guidance to the ongoing preparations for the new electron ion programs.
Exclusive rho^0-meson electroproduction is studied in the HERMES experiment, using a 27.6 GeV longitudinally polarized electron/positron beam and unpolarized hydrogen and deuterium targets in the kinematic region 0.5 GeV^2 < Q^2 < 7.0 GeV^2, 3.0 GeV < W < 6.3 GeV, and -t < 0.4 GeV^2. Real and imaginary parts of the ratios of the natural-parity-exchange helicity amplitudes T_{11} (gamma^*_T --> rho_T), T_{01} (gamma^*_T --> rho_L), T_{10} (gamma^*_L --> rho_T), and T_{1-1} (gamma^*_{-T} -->rho_T) to T_{00} (gamma^*_L --> rho_L) are extracted from the data. For the unnatural-parity-exchange amplitude U_{11}, the ratio |U_{11}/T_{00}| is obtained. The Q^2 and t dependences of these ratios are presented and compared with perturbative QCD predictions.
Exclusive $rho^0$-meson electroproduction is studied by the HERMES experiment, using the 27.6 GeV longitudinally polarized electron/positron beam of HERA and a transversely polarized hydrogen target, in the kinematic region 1.0 GeV$^2$<Q$^2$<7.0 GeV$^2$, 3.0 GeV<W<6.3 GeV, and -t<0.4 GeV$^2$. Using an unbinned maximum-likelihood method, 25 parameters are extracted. These determine the real and imaginary parts of the ratios of several helicity amplitudes describing $rho^0$-meson production by a virtual photon. The denominator of those ratios is the dominant amplitude, the nucleon-helicity-non-flip amplitude $F_{0frac{1}{2}0frac{1}{2}}$, which describes the production of a longitudinal $rho^{0}$-meson by a longitudinal virtual photon. The ratios of nucleon-helicity-non-flip amplitudes are found to be in good agreement with those from the previous HERMES analysis. The transverse target polarization allows for the first time the extraction of ratios of a number of nucleon-helicity-flip amplitudes to $F_{0frac{1}{2}0frac{1}{2}}$. Results obtained in a handbag approach based on generalized parton distributions taking into account the contribution from pion exchange are found to be in good agreement with these ratios. Within the model, the data favor a positive sign for the $pi-rho$ transition form factor. By also exploiting the longitudinal beam polarization, a total of 71 $rho^0$ spin-density matrix elements is determined from the extracted 25 parameters, in contrast to only 53 elements as directly determined in earlier analyses.
Exclusive production of $rho^0$ and $J/psi$ mesons in e^+ p collisions has been studied with the ZEUS detector in the kinematic range $0.25 < Q^2 < 50 GeV^2, 20 < W < 167 GeV$ for the $rho^0$ data and $2 < Q^2 < 40 GeV^2, 50 < W < 150 GeV$ for the $J/psi$ data. Cross sections for exclusive $rho^0$ and $J/psi$ production have been measured as a function of $Q^2, W$ and $t$. The spin-density matrix elements $r^{04}_{00}, r^1_{1-1}$ and $Re r^{5}_{10}$ have been determined for exclusive $rho^0$ production as well as $r^{04}_{00}$ and $r^{04}_{1-1}$ for exclusive $J/psi$ production. The results are discussed in the context of theoretical models invoking soft and hard phenomena.