HADES is a versatile magnetic spectrometer aimed at studying dielectron production in pion, proton and heavy-ion induced collisions. Its main features include a ring imaging gas Cherenkov detector for electron-hadron discrimination, a tracking system
consisting of a set of 6 superconducting coils producing a toroidal field and drift chambers and a multiplicity and electron trigger array for additional electron-hadron discrimination and event characterization. A two-stage trigger system enhances events containing electrons. The physics program is focused on the investigation of hadron properties in nuclei and in the hot and dense hadronic matter. The detector system is characterized by an 85% azimuthal coverage over a polar angle interval from 18 to 85 degree, a single electron efficiency of 50% and a vector meson mass resolution of 2.5%. Identification of pions, kaons and protons is achieved combining time-of-flight and energy loss measurements over a large momentum range. This paper describes the main features and the performance of the detector system.
Design studies for a second generation Dilepton Spectrometer to be built at the SIS accelerator of GSI are presented. The basic design parameters of this system are specified and the different detector components for charged particle tracking and for
lepton identification are described. The geometrical acceptance for lepton pairs is given. Results on single track momentum resolution and on lepton pair mass resolution are reported.
We present measurements of exclusive pi^{+,0} and eta production in pp reactions at 1.25 GeV and 2.2 GeV beam kinetic energy in hadron and dielectron channels. In the case of pi^+ and pi^0, high-statistics invariant-mass and angular distributions are
obtained within the HADES acceptance as well as acceptance corrected distributions, which are compared to a resonance model. The sensitivity of the data to the yield and production angular distribution of Delta(1232) and higher lying baryon resonances is shown, and an improved parameterization is proposed. The extracted cross sections are of special interest in the case of pp to pp eta, since controversial data exist at 2.0 GeV; we find sigma =0.142 pm 0.022 mb. Using the dielectron channels, the pi^0 and eta Dalitz decay signals are reconstructed with yields fully consistent with the hadronic channels. The electron invariant masses and acceptance corrected helicity angle distributions are found in good agreement with model predictions.
Inclusive production of e+e--pairs in pp and dp collisions at a kinetic beam energy of 1.25 GeV/u has been studied with the HADES spectrometer. In the latter case, the main goal was to obtain data on pair emission in quasi-free np collisions. To sele
ct this particular reaction channel the HADES experimental setup was extended with a Forward Wall hodoscope, which allowed to register spectator protons. Here, the measured invariant mass distributions demonstrate a strong enhancement of the pair yield for M > 140 MeV/c2 in comparison to pp data.
Results of the HADES measurement of inclusive dielectron production in Ar+KCl collisions at a kinetic beam energy of 1.76 AGeV are presented. For the first time, high mass resolution spectroscopy was performed. The invariant mass spectrum of dielectr
ons is compared with predictions of UrQMD and HSD transport codes.