No Arabic abstract
We report the most precise measurement to date of a parity-violating asymmetry in elastic electron-proton scattering. The measurement was carried out with a beam energy of 3.03 GeV and a scattering angle <theta_lab>=6 degrees, with the result A_PV = -1.14 +/- 0.24 (stat) +/- 0.06 (syst) parts per million. From this we extract, at Q^2 = 0.099 GeV^2, the strange form factor combination G_E^s + 0.080 G_M^s = 0.030 +/- 0.025 (stat) +/- 0.006 (syst) +/- 0.012 (FF) where the first two errors are experimental and the last error is due to the uncertainty in the neutron electromagnetic form factor. This result significantly improves current knowledge of G_E^s and G_M^s at Q^2 ~0.1 GeV^2. A consistent picture emerges when several measurements at about the same Q^2 value are combined: G_E^s is consistent with zero while G_M^s prefers positive values though G_E^s=G_M^s=0 is compatible with the data at 95% C.L.
We report on a measurement of the parity violating asymmetry in the elastic scattering of polarized electrons off unpolarized protons with the A4 apparatus at MAMI in Mainz at a four momentum transfer value of $Q^2$ = Qsquare (GeV/c)$^2$ and at a forward electron scattering angle of 30$^circ < theta_e < 40^circ$. The measured asymmetry is $A_{LR}(vec{e}p)$ = (Aphys $pm$ Deltastat$_{stat}$ $pm$ Deltasyst$_{syst}$) $times$ 10$^{-6}$. The expectation from the Standard Model assuming no strangeness contribution to the vector current is A$_0$ = (Azero $pm$ DeltaAzero) $times$ 10$^{-6}$. We have improved the statistical accuracy by a factor of 3 as compared to our previous measurements at a higher $Q^2$. We have extracted the strangeness contribution to the electromagnetic form factors from our data to be $G_E^s$ + FakGMs $G_M^s$ = GEsGMs $pm $ DeltaGEsGMs at $Q^2$ = Qsquare (GeV/c)$^2$. As in our previous measurement at higher momentum transfer for $G_E^s$ + 0.230 $G_M^s$, we again find the value for $G_E^s$ + FakGMs $G_M^s$ to be positive, this time at an improved significance level of 2 $sigma$.
We report on a measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry in the scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons on unpolarized protons at a $Q^2$ of 0.230 (GeV/c)^2 and a scattering angle of theta_e = 30^o - 40^o. Using a large acceptance fast PbF_2 calorimeter with a solid angle of DeltaOmega = 0.62 sr the A4 experiment is the first parity violation experiment to count individual scattering events. The measured asymmetry is A_{phys} =(-5.44 +- 0.54_{stat} +- 0.27_{rm sys}) 10^{-6}. The Standard Model expectation assuming no strangeness contributions to the vector form factors is $A_0=(-6.30 +- 0.43) 10^{-6}$. The difference is a direct measurement of the strangeness contribution to the vector form factors of the proton. The extracted value is G^s_E + 0.225 G^s_M = 0.039 +- 0.034 or F^s_1 + 0.130 F^s_2 = 0.032 +- 0.028.
A new measurement of the parity violating asymmetry in elastic electron scattering on hydrogen at backward angles and at a four momentum transfer of Q^2=0.22 (GeV/c)^2 is reported here. The measured asymmetry is A_LR=(-17.23 +- 0.82_stat +-0.89_syst) ppm. The Standard Model prediction assuming no strangeness is A_0=(-15.87 +- 1.22) ppm. In combination with previous results from measurements at forward angles, it it possible to disentangle for the first time the strange electric and magnetic form factors at this momentum transfer, G_E^s(0.22)=0.050 +- 0.038 +- 0.019 and G_M^s(0.22)=-0.14 +- 0.11 +- 0.11.
The spatial distribution of charge and magnetization within the proton is encoded in the elastic form factors. These have been precisely measured in elastic electron scattering, and the combination of proton and neutron form factors allows for the separation of the up- and down-quark contributions. In this work, we extract the proton and neutron form factors from worlds data with an emphasis on precise new data covering the low-momentum region, which is sensitive to the large-scale structure of the nucleon. From these, we separate the up- and down-quark contributions to the proton form factors. We combine cross section and polarization measurements of elastic electron-proton scattering to separate the proton form factors and two-photon exchange (TPE) contributions. We combine the proton form factors with parameterization of the neutron form factor data and uncertainties to separate the up- and down-quark contributions to the protons charge and magnetic form factors. The extracted TPE corrections are compared to previous phenomenological extractions, TPE calculations, and direct measurements from the comparison of electron and positron scattering. The flavor-separated form factors are extracted and compared to models of the nucleon structure. With the inclusion of the precise new data, the extracted TPE contributions show a clear change ofsign at low $Q^2$, necessary to explain the high-$Q^2$ form factor discrepancy while being consistent with the known $Q^2 to 0$ limit. We find that the new Mainz data yield a significantly different result for the proton magnetic form factor and its flavor-separated contributions. We also observe that the RMS radius of both the up- and down-quark distributions are smaller than the RMS charge radius of the proton.
First data on coherent threshold pi^0 electroproduction from the deuteron taken by the A1 Collaboration at the Mainz Microtron MAMI are presented. At a four-momentum transfer of q^2=-0.1 GeV^2/c^2 the full solid angle was covered up to a center-of-mass energy of 4 MeV above threshold. By means of a Rosenbluth separation the longitudinal threshold s wave multipole and an upper limit for the transverse threshold s wave multipole could be extracted and compared to predictions of Heavy Baryon Chiral Perturbation Theory.