M. Piccolo

Design, construction, prototype tests and performance of a vertex chamber for the MAC detector☆

Abstract The design considerations, construction techniques, prototype tests and performance characteristics of a pressurized drift chamber used in the MAC detector at PEP are described. The chamber consists of 324 aluminized mylar tubes of 6.9 mm diameter with wall thickness of 100 μm. With appropriate shielding it operates successfully at 4.6 cm from the beam line. It was simple to construct and was configured to permit any malfunctioning tubes to be remotely disconnected without affecting operation. The chamber operated without problems for two years in the PEP environment with a gas mixture of 49.5% argon, 49.5% CO 2 , 1% CH 4 , at 4 atm absolute pressure. The mean spatial resolution averaged over all tubes was 45 μm. The time to distance relation for this gas mixture, along with the geometric positioning of individual wires relative to the central tracking chamber, was obtained with data from Bhabha scattering events. We also describe resolution studies performed with a prototype chamber in a SLAC test beam. A wide range of gases, gas pressures, and electronic parameters were explored. These studies proved that resolutions in the 10–50 μm range were possible. Our experience demonstrates that chambers of this type provide high precision tracking and are particularly suited for operation in regions with difficult physical access and/or high ambient radiation levels.

Additional evidence for B0B̄0 mixing

Abstract The rate of like-charge dimuons has been measured with the MAC detector in hardonic events produced in e + e − annihilation at √ s =29 GeV. If the observed excess is attributed to B 0 ue5f8B 0 mixing, the corresponding value of the mixing parameter χ = Γ (B→ μ − X)/ Γ (B→ μ ± X) is χ =0.21 +0.29 −0.15 and χ >0.02 at 90% CL.

The iron calorimeter and muon identifier for SLD

Abstract The iron flux-return structure for the SLC Large Detector (SLD) has been instrumented with plastic streamer tubes covering an area of about 4500 m 2 , to provide muon identification plus energy measurement of hadron showers. A description is given of the production techniques used to construct this large detector system, with an emphasis on the methods by which high reliability and a small number of defects in the completed assembly were ensured.

Measurements of tau decays to three pions

Abstract We reports the result of a study of a tau decays with three pions in the final state (τ±→π±π+π−υτ and τ ±→π±π0π0υτ) from data accumulated with the MAC detector operating at the PEP storage ring. The branching fractions for these modes are measured to be 0.070±0.003±0.007 and, with assumptions discussed in the text, 0.087±0.004±0.011, respectively. Assuming that these final states result from the decay of the a1 meson, we measure the resonant parameters of the a1 with the three charged pion sample to be ma1=1166±18±11 MeV and γa1=405±75±25 MeV, and with the one charged plus two neutral pions sample to be ma1=1164±41±23 MeV and γa1=419±108±57 MeV.

Momentum analysis of kaon and pion pairs produced from time-like photons at 1.6 GeV energy

We present results for the total cross section of e+e− annihilation into two hadrons at 1.6 GeV: σππ = σKK = (1.8 ± 1.1) × 10-33 cm2.From these values we obtain the time-like electromagnetic form factors these mesons: |Fπ|2 = 0.24 ± 0.14 and |FK|2 = 0.46 ± 0.26.

Multihadron production from e+e− annihilation at 1.6 c.m. energy

The results obtained in the investigation of the multihadron production in e+e- annihilation at 1.6 GeV cm energy are presented

The limited streamer tubes of the SLD

Abstract A large hadron calorimeter and muon tracking device using plastic streamer tubes has been constructed in the iron flux-return structure for the SLD detector at SLAC. Various studies of the operating characteristics of the streamer tubes of this system are presented. Emphasis is placed on the tracking capabilities of the device and on the optimization of the high voltage and readout electronics.

A measurement of the e+e−→bb forward-backward charge asymmetry at √s=29 GeV☆

Abstract High p ⊥ inclusive muon events produced in e + e − annihilations at √ s =29 GeV have been analyzed to obtain a measurement of the b b forward-backward charge asymmetry. The result A b =0.034±0.070±0.035 differs from the theoretical expectation (−0.16) unless substantial B 0 ue5f8 B 0 mixing is assumed.

The muon and neutral hadron detector for BaBar

Abstract The muon and neutral hadron detector of the BaBar experiment for the PEP-II Asymmetric B-factory at SLAC uses Resistive Plate Counters (RPCs) as active detectors. A large fraction of the total system, which consists of approximately 800 chambers for an overall surface of 2000xa0m 2 , has already been built and tested in cosmic rays. Preliminary results of the operating characteristics with a new non-flammable and environmentally safe gas mixture are reported.

A nonflammable gas mixture for plastic limited streamer tubes

Abstract The gas mixtures presently used in plastic limited streamer tubes (“Iarocci tubes” or LSTs) have a high hydrocarbon content and are very flammable when mixed with air, posing a potential safety hazard in modern large underground experiments. The SLD Warm Iron Calorimeter group has therefore made an extensive investigation of nonflammable ternary mixtures based on CO 2 . Ar and various hydrocarbons. We present here brief results of this research. In particular, we describe a detailed study of a nonflammable gas mixture (2.5% Ar: 9.5% iC 4 H 10 : 88% CO 2 ) which indicates that this mixture has properties comparable to those of the two commonly used gases (25% Ar: 75% iC 4 H 10 and 21% Ar: 37% nC 5 H 12 : 42% CO 2 ) and could successfully replace these mixtures in LST-based tracking devices and hadron calorimeters.