Search for pair production of unstable heavy leptons in e+e−e^{+}e^{-} collisions at centre-of-mass energies of 161 and 172 GeV

The data collected at 161 and 172 GeV by ALEPH at LEP, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of about 22 pb-1, are analysed in a search for pair-production of heavy leptons. No evidence for a signal was found. New limits on production cross-sections and on masses of sequential leptons are set, which significantly improve existing limits from searches at LEP1.5

K^- ^3He and K^+K^- interactions in the pd -> ^3He K^+K^- reaction

We investigate the K^- ^3He and K^+ K^- interactions in the reaction pd -> ^3He K^+ K^- near threshold and compare our model calculations with data from the MOMO experiment at COSY-Juelich. A large attractive effective K^- p amplitude would give a significant K^- ^3He final-state interaction effect which is not supported by the experimental data. We also estimate upper limits for the a_0(980) and f_0(980) contributions to the produced K^+ K^- pairs.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in PR

Characterization of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense variant surface glycoprotein LiTat 1.5

At present, all available diagnostic antibody detection tests for Trypanosoma brucei gambiense human African trypanosomiasis are based on predominant variant surface glycoproteins (VSGs), such as VSG LiTat 1.5. During investigations aiming at replacement of the native VSGs by recombinant proteins or synthetic peptides, the sequence of VSG LiTat 1.5 was derived from cDNA and direct N-terminal amino acid sequencing. Characterization of the VSG based on cysteine distribution in the amino acid sequence revealed an unusual cysteine pattern identical to that of VSG Kinu 1 of T. b. brucei. Even though both VSGs lack the third of four conserved cysteines typical for type A N-terminal domains, they can be classified as type A

Inclusive K^+ meson production in proton-nucleus interactions

The production of K^+ mesons in pA (A = D, C, Cu, Ag, Au) collisions has been investigated at the COoler SYnchrotron COSY-J\"ulich for beam energies T_p = 1.0 - 2.3 GeV. Double differential inclusive pC cross sections at forward angles theta < 12 degrees as well as the target-mass dependence of the K^+ momentum spectra have been measured with the ANKE spectrometer. Far below the free NN threshold at T_{NN}=1.58 GeV the spectra reveal a high degree of collectivity in the target nucleus. From the target-mass dependence of the cross sections at higher energies, the repulsive in-medium potential of K^+ mesons can be deduced. Using pN cross-section parameterisations from literature and our measured pD data we derive a cross-section ratio of sigma(pn -> K^+ X) / sigma(pp -> K^+ X) ~ (3-4).Comment: Accepted for publication in EPJ A; 17 pages, 10 figures, 11 table

Searches for R-parity violating Supersymmetry at LEP 2

Searches for pair-production of Supersymmetric particles under the assumption that R-parity is not conserved have been performed using the data collected by ALEPH at centre-of-mass energies of 130-172 GeV. The results for a dominant R-parity violating coupling LLE, for which the observed candidate events in the data are in agreement with the SM expectation, translate into lower limits on the mass of charginos, neutralinos, sleptons, sneutrinos and squarks. We also give preliminary results on the search for charginos, sleptons and sneutrinos via a dominant LQD coupling, and discuss the implications of our results on the R-parity violating interpretations of the recently reported excess of high Q2 events at HERA, and the ALEPH four jet anomaly

Evidence for an Excited Hyperon State in pp -> p K^+ Y^{0*}

Indications for the production of a neutral excited hyperon in the reaction pp -> p K^+ Y^{0*} are observed in an experiment performed with the ANKE spectrometer at COSY-J\"ulich at a beam momentum of 3.65 GeV/c. Two final states were investigated simultaneously, viz. Y^{0*} -> pi^+X^- and pi^-X^+, and consistent results were obtained in spite of the quite different experimental conditions. The parameters of the hyperon state are M(Y^{0*})= (1480 +/- 15) MeV/c^2 and Gamma(Y^{0*})= (60 +/- 15) MeV/c^2. The production cross section is of the order of few hundred nanobarns. Since the isospin of the Y^{0*} has not been determined here, it could either be an observation of the Sigma(1480), a one-star resonance of the PDG tables, or alternatively a Lambda hyperon. Relativistic quark models for the baryon spectrum do not predict any excited hyperon in this mass range and so the Y^{0*} may be of exotic nature.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Phys.Rev.Let

Untersuchung der Struktur von Quark- und Gluonjets in Z-Zerfällen

The structure of quark and gluon jets is analysed to provide a detailed test of perturbative QCD. This includes a study of the transverse jet structure, probed by measuring the jet broadening distribution and differential subjet rates. The transition region between perturbative and non-perturbative QCD is examined by studying subjet multiplicities as a function of the subjet resolution scale. In addition to this the gluon fragmentation function for charged particles is determined

Interactive Effects of Ocean Acidification and Warming on Growth, Fitness and Survival of the Cold-Water Coral Lophelia pertusa under Different Food Availabilities

Cold-water corals are important bioengineers that provide structural habitat for a diverse species community. About 70% of the presently known scleractinian cold-water corals are expected to be exposed to corrosive waters by the end of this century due to ocean acidification. At the same time, the corals will experience a steady warming of their environment. Studies on the sensitivity of cold-water corals to climate change mainly concentrated on single stressors in short-term incubation approaches, thus not accounting for possible long-term acclimatisation and the interactive effects of multiple stressors. Besides, preceding studies did not test for possible compensatory effects of a change in food availability. In this study a multifactorial long-term experiment (6 months) was conducted with end-of-the-century scenarios of elevated pCO2 and temperature levels in order to examine the acclimatisation potential of the cosmopolitan cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa to future climate change related threats. For the first time multiple ocean change impacts including the role of the nutritional status were tested on L. pertusa with regard to growth, “fitness,” and survival. Our results show that while L. pertusa is capable of calcifying under elevated CO2 and temperature, its condition (fitness) is more strongly influenced by food availability rather than changes in seawater chemistry. Whereas growth rates increased at elevated temperature (+4°C), they decreased under elevated CO2 concentrations (~800 μatm). No difference in net growth was detected when corals were exposed to the combination of increased CO2 and temperature compared to ambient conditions. A 10-fold higher food supply stimulated growth under elevated temperature, which was not observed in the combined treatment. This indicates that increased food supply does not compensate for adverse effects of ocean acidification and underlines the importance of considering the nutritional status in studies investigating organism responses under environmental changes