I. J. D. MacGregor

New results on the Roper resonance and the P-11 partial wave

Abstract Properties of the Roper resonance, the first scalar excitation of the nucleon, are determined. Pole positions and residues of the P 11 partial wave are studied in a combined analysis of pion- and photo-induced reactions. We find the Roper pole at { ( 1371 ± 7 ) − i ( 92 ± 10 ) } MeV and an elasticity of 0.61 ± 0.03 . The largest decay coupling is found for the Nσ ( σ = ( π π ) - S -wave). The analysis is based on new data on γ p → p π 0 π 0 for photons in the energy range from the two-pion threshold to 820 MeV from TAPS at Mainz and from 0.4 to 1.3 GeV from Crystal Barrel at Bonn and includes further data from other experiments. The partial wave analysis excludes the possibility that the Roper resonance is split into two states with different partial decay widths.

In-medium modifications of the pi pi interaction in photon-induced reactions

Differential cross sections of the reactions (gamma,pi(0)pi(0)) and (gamma,pi(0)pi(+/-)) have been measured for several nuclei (1H,12C, and (nat)Pb) at an incident-photon energy of E(gamma)=400-460 MeV at the tagged-photon facility at MAMI-B using the TAPS spectrometer. A significant nuclear-mass dependence of the pipi invariant-mass distribution is found in the pi(0)pi(0) channel. This dependence is not observed in the pi(0)pi(+/-) channel and is consistent with an in-medium modification of the pipi interaction in the I=J=0 channel. The data are compared to pi-induced measurements and to calculations within a chiral-unitary approach.

Near threshold photoproduction of η-mesons from complex nuclei

Total and differential cross sections for photoproduction of eta mesons from C-12, Ca-40, Nb-93 and Pb-nat have been obtained up to 790 MeV incident photon energy at the Mainz Microtron (MAMI) with the TAPS spectrometer. The absorption cross section sigma(eta N)(abs) = (30 +/- 2.5 +/- 6) mb of eta mesons in nuclear matter and the absorption length lambda(eta) = (2.0 +/- 0.2 +/- 0.4) fm are extracted. No significant depletion of the S(1)1(1535) strength in the eta photoproduction on nuclei is observed.

Photoproduction of eta-mesic He-3

The photoproduction of eta-mesic 3He has been investigated using the TAPS calorimeter at the Mainz Microtron accelerator facility MAMI. The total inclusive cross section for the reaction gamma3He-->etaX has been measured for photon energies from threshold to 820 MeV. The total and angular differential coherent eta cross sections have been extracted up to energies of 745 MeV. A resonancelike structure just above the eta production threshold with an isotropic angular distribution suggests the existence of a resonant quasibound state. This is supported by studies of a competing decay channel of such a quasibound eta-mesic nucleus into pi(0)pX. A binding energy of (-4.4+/-4.2) MeV and a width of (25.6+/-6.1) MeV is deduced for the quasibound eta-mesic state in 3He.

Measurement of the electric form factor of the neutron at Q 2 = 0.3-0.8 (GeV/ c) 2 ⋆

Abstract.The electric form factor of the neutron, GE,n, has been measured at the Mainz Microtron by recoil polarimetry in the quasielastic D(¯e, e’¯n)p reaction. Three data points have been extracted at squared four-momentum transfers Q2 = 0.3, 0.6 and 0.8 (GeV/c)2. Corrections for nuclear binding effects have been applied.

Narrow structure in the excitation function of η photoproduction off the neutron

The photoproduction of η mesons off nucleons bound in 2H and 3He has been measured in coincidence with recoil protons and recoil neutrons for incident photon energies from threshold up to 1.4 GeV. The experiments were performed at the Mainz MAMI accelerator, using the Glasgow tagged photon facility. Decay photons from the η→2γ and η→3π0 decays and the recoil nucleons were detected with an almost 4π electromagnetic calorimeter combining the Crystal Ball and TAPS detectors. The data from both targets are of excellent statistical quality and show a narrow structure in the excitation function of γn→nη. The results from the two measurements are consistent, taking into account the expected effects from nuclear Fermi motion. The best estimates for position and intrinsic width of the structure are W=(1670±5)  MeV and Γ=(30±15)  MeV. For the first time precise results for the angular dependence of this structure have been extracted.

Measurement of the Transverse Target and Beam-Target Asymmetries in η Meson Photoproduction at MAMI

We present new data for the transverse target asymmetry T and the very first data for the beam-target asymmetry F in the γ p →ηp reaction up to a center-of-mass energy of W=1.9  GeV. The data were obtained with the Crystal-Ball/TAPS detector setup at the Glasgow tagged photon facility of the Mainz Microtron MAMI. All existing model predictions fail to reproduce the new data indicating a significant impact on our understanding of the underlying dynamics of η meson photoproduction. The peculiar nodal structure observed in existing T data close to threshold is not confirmed.

Quasifree photoproduction of η mesons off protons and neutrons

Differential and total cross sections for the quasifree reactions γp→ηp and γn→ηn have been determined at the MAMI-C electron accelerator by using a liquid deuterium target. Photons were produced via bremsstrahlung from the 1.5 GeV incident electron beam and energy tagged with the Glasgow photon tagger. Decay photons of the neutral decay modes η→2γ and η→3π0→6γ and coincident recoil nucleons were detected in a combined setup of the Crystal Ball and the TAPS calorimeters. The η-production cross sections were measured in coincidence with recoil protons, recoil neutrons, and in an inclusive mode without a condition on recoil nucleons, which allowed a check of the internal consistency of the data. The effects from nuclear Fermi motion were removed by a kinematic reconstruction of the final-state invariant mass and possible nuclear effects on the quasifree cross section were investigated by a comparison of free and quasifree-proton data. The results, which represent a significant improvement in statistical quality compared to previous measurements, agree with the known neutron-to-proton cross-section ratio in the peak of the S11(1535) resonance and confirm a peak in the neutron cross section, which is absent for the proton, at a center-of-mass energy W=(1670±5) MeV with an intrinsic width of Γ≈30 MeV.

A tagged photon spectrometer for use with the mainz 180 MeV microtron

This paper describes a photon tagging system which has been installed on the 180 MeV electron microtron at the Institut fur Kernphysik in Mainz for use in experiments on photonuclear reactions at intermediate energies. The system enables bremsstrahlung produced photons in the energy range 80–174 MeV to be tagged at rates up to 5×107 s−1.

Measurements of double-polarized compton scattering asymmetries and extraction of the proton spin polarizabilities.

The spin polarizabilities of the nucleon describe how the spin of the nucleon responds to an incident polarized photon. The most model-independent way to extract the nucleon spin polarizabilities is through polarized Compton scattering. Double-polarized Compton scattering asymmetries on the proton were measured in the Δ(1232) region using circularly polarized incident photons and a transversely polarized proton target at the Mainz Microtron. Fits to asymmetry data were performed using a dispersion model calculation and a baryon chiral perturbation theory calculation, and a separation of all four proton spin polarizabilities in the multipole basis was achieved. The analysis based on a dispersion model calculation yields γ(E1E1)=-3.5±1.2, γ(M1M1)=3.16±0.85, γ(E1M2)=-0.7±1.2, and γ(M1E2)=1.99±0.29, in units of 10(-4)  fm(4).