Leading neutron physics at HERA using the forward neutron detector at ZEUS.
Published: 2004
Language: eng
Number of pages: 141
Description: Leading neutrons produced in high energy electron-proton collisions at a center-of-momentum energy of 318 GeV2 are studied with the Forward Neutron Detector of the ZEUS experiment at the HERA collider. The Forward Neutron Detector consists of the Forward Neutron Calorimeter and the newly implemented Forward Neutron Tracker. The detectors and their calibration are presented. The transverse momentum squared,   p2T , distributions of leading neutrons in bins of xL, the fraction of the proton energy carried by the neutron, have been measured using the Forward Neutron Tracker. The measurements were made using data samples in deep inelastic scattering and photoproduction, corresponding to integrated luminosities of 21 pb-1 and 9.3 pb-1, respectively. The distributions are fitted with an exponential, and the slopes are presented as a function of xL. The results are compared to models of one pion exchange and to leading proton measurements. The xL distributions of the photoproduced neutrons are measured for different bins of t, the invariant momentum transfer squared. The (1 - xL) distributions satisfy a power law dN/dxL &prop; (1 - xL)a (t) with the powers  a(t) lying on a linear trajectory in t:  a(t) = 1.08 +/-   1.08+0.40-0.42  - (2.78 +/-   0.32+0.31-0.41  GeV-2)t. This result is consistent with that expected from pion exchange and with previous measurements. The neutron energy distributions are compared for different values of momentum transfer squared between the electron and the proton and the results are discussed in the context of models of absorption.
Notes: Adviser: J. F. Martin.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Toronto, 2004.

Electronic version licensed for access by U. of T. users.

Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 65-05, Section: B, page: 2463.