M. Nanova

Quasifree photoproduction of eta mesons off the neutron

Quasifree photoproduction of eta mesons off nucleons bound in the deuteron has been measured with the CBELSA/TAPS detector for incident photon energies up to 2.5 GeV at the Bonn ELSA accelerator. The eta mesons have been detected in coincidence with recoil protons and recoil neutrons, which allows a detailed comparison of the quasifree n(gamma,eta)n and p(gamma,eta)p reactions. The excitation function for eta production off the neutron shows a pronounced bumplike structure at W=1.68 GeV (E{gamma} approximately 1 GeV), which is absent for the proton.

Photoproduction of eta and eta(') mesons off protons

Total and differential cross sections for eta and eta()photoproduction off the proton have been determined with the CBELSA/TAPS detector for photon energies between 0.85 and 2.55 GeV. The eta mesons are detected in their two neutral decay modes, eta ->gamma gamma and eta -> 3 pi(0)-> 6 gamma, and for the first time, cover the full angular range in cos theta(c.m.) of the eta meson. These new eta photoproduction data are consistent with the earlier CB-ELSA results. The eta() mesons are observed in their neutral decay to pi(0)pi(0)eta -> 6 gamma and also extend the coverage in angular range.

Modification of the {omega}-Meson Lifetime in Nuclear Matter

Information on hadron properties in the nuclear medium has been derived from the photoproduction of omega mesons on the nuclei C, Ca, Nb, and Pb using the Crystal Barrel/TAPS detector at the ELSA tagged photon facility in Bonn. The dependence of the omega-meson cross section on the nuclear mass number has been compared with three different types of models: a Glauber analysis, a Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck analysis of the Giessen theory group, and a calculation by the Valencia theory group. In all three cases, the inelastic omega width is found to be 130-150 MeV/c(2) at normal nuclear matter density for an average 3-momentum of 1.1 GeV/c. In the rest frame of the omega meson, this inelastic omega width corresponds to a reduction of the omega lifetime by a factor approximately 30. For the first time, the momentum dependent omegaN cross section has been extracted from the experiment and is in the range of 70 mb.

Quasi-free photoproduction of η-mesons off the deuteron

Abstract.Precise data for quasi-free photoproduction of η-mesons off the deuteron have been measured at the Bonn ELSA accelerator with the combined Crystal Barrel/TAPS detector for incident photon energies up to 2.5GeV. The η-mesons have been detected in coincidence with recoil protons and neutrons. Possible nuclear effects like Fermi motion and re-scattering can be studied via a comparison of the quasi-free reaction off the bound proton to η-production off the free proton. No significant effects beyond the folding of the free cross-section with the momentum distribution of the bound protons have been found. These Fermi motion effects can be removed by an analysis using the invariant mass of the η-nucleon pairs reconstructed from the final-state four-momenta of the particles. The total cross-section for quasi-free η-photoproduction off the neutron reveals even without correction for Fermi motion a pronounced bump-like structure around 1GeV of incident photon energy, which is not observed for the proton. This structure is even narrower in the invariant-mass spectrum of the η-neutron pairs. Position and width of the peak in the invariant-mass spectrum are W ≈ 1665 MeV and FWHM Γ ≈ 25 MeV. The data are compared to the results of different models.

In-medium omega mass from the gamma+Nb -> pi(0)gamma+X reaction

Data on the photoproduction of omega mesons on nuclei have been reanalyzed in a search for in-medium modifications. The data were taken with the crystal barrel (CB)/two-arm photon spectrometer (TAPS) detector system at the ELectron Stretcher Anlage (ELSA) accelerator facility in Bonn. First results from the analysis of the data set were published by Trnka et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 94, 192303 (2005)], claiming a lowering of the. mass in the nuclear medium by 14% at normal nuclear matter density. The extracted. line shape was found to be sensitive to the background subtraction. For this reason a reanalysis of the same data set has been initiated, and a new method has been developed to reduce the background and to determine the shape and absolute magnitude of the background directly from the data. Details of the reanalysis and of the background determination are described. The omega signal on the Nb target, extracted in the reanalysis, does not show a deviation from the corresponding line shape on a LH2 target, measured as reference. The earlier claim of an in-medium mass shift is thus not confirmed. The sensitivity of the omega line shape to different in-medium modification scenarios is discussed.

Transparency ratio in gamma A -> eta ' A ' and the in-medium eta ' width

The photoproduction of eta`-mesons off different nuclei has been measured with the CBELSA/TAPS detector system for incident photon energies between 1500-2200 MeV. The transparency ratio has been deduced and compared to theoretical calculations describing the propagation of eta`-mesons in nuclei. The comparison indicates a width of the eta`-meson of the order of Gamma = 15-25 MeV at rho = rho(0) for an average momentum p(eta`) = 1050 MeV/c, at which the eta`-meson is produced in the nuclear rest frame. The inelastic eta`N cross section is estimated to be 3-10 mb. Parameterizing the photoproduction cross section of eta`-mesons by sigma(A) = sigma(0)A(alpha), a value of alpha = 0.84 +/- 0.03 has been deduced

Anomaly in the K-S(0)Sigma(+) photoproduction cross section off the proton at the K* threshold

Abstract The γ + p → K 0 + Σ + photoproduction reaction is investigated in the energy region from threshold to E γ = 2250 MeV . The differential cross section exhibits increasing forward-peaking with energy, but only up to the K ⁎ threshold. Beyond, it suddenly returns to a flat distribution with the forward cross section dropping by a factor of four. In the total cross section a pronounced structure is observed between the K ⁎ Λ and K ⁎ Σ thresholds.

Photoproduction of η -mesons off nuclei for Eγ ⩽ 2.2 GeV

The photoproduction of η -mesons off 12C , 40Ca , 93Nb , and natPb nuclei has been measured with a tagged photon beam with energies between 0.6 and 2.2GeV. The experiment was performed at the Bonn ELSA accelerator with the combined setup of the Crystal Barrel and TAPS calorimeters. It aimed at the in-medium properties of the S11(1535) nucleon resonance and the study of the absorption properties of nuclear matter for η -mesons. Careful consideration was given to contributions from ηπ final states and secondary production mechanisms of η -mesons, e.g. from inelastic πN reactions of intermediate pions. The analysis of the mass number scaling shows that the nuclear absorption cross-section

Photoproduction of neutral pions off protons

sigma_{{Neta}}^{}

Measurement of the beam asymmetry Sigma in the forward direction for (gamma)over-right-arrowp -> p pi(0)

for η -mesons is constant over a wide range of the η momentum. The comparison of the excitation functions to data off the deuteron and to calculations in the framework of a BUU model show no unexplained in-medium modifications of the S11(1535) .