59 research outputs found
Observation of inverse diproton photodisintegration at intermediate energies
The reaction pp->{pp}_s\gamma, where {pp}_s is a proton pair with an
excitation energy E_{pp}<3 MeV, has been observed with the ANKE spectrometer at
COSY-Juelich for proton beam energies of T_p=0.353, 0.500, and 0.550 GeV. This
is equivalent to photodisintegration of a free 1S_0 diproton for photon
energies E\gamma ~ T_p/2. The differential cross sections measured for c.m.
angles 0 deg.<\theta_{pp}<20 deg. exhibit a steep increase with angle that is
compatible with E1 and E2 multipole contributions. The ratio of the measured
cross sections to those of np->d\gamma is on the 10^{-3}-10^{-2} level. The
increase of the pp->{pp}_s\gamma cross section with T_p might reflect the
influence of the Delta(1232) excitation.Comment: 4 pages + 4 figure
Resonance-like coherent production of a pion pair in the reaction in the GeV region
The reaction was studied at 0.8-2.0 GeV proton
beam energies with the ANKE magnetic spectrometer at the COSY synchrotron
storage ring. The proton-deuteron pairs emerging with high momenta, 0.6-1.8
GeV/, were detected at small angles with respect to the proton beam.
Distribution over the reaction missing mass reveals a local enhancement
near the threshold of the pion pair production specific for the so-called ABC
effect. The enhancement has a structure of a narrow bump placed above a smooth
continuum. The invariant mass of the system in this enhancement
region exhibits a resonance-like peak at GeV/
with the width GeV/. A possible interpretation of
these features is discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 16 figures, submitted to Eur. Phys. J. A. v2: Added
references [42,43] in section IV.A. v3: revised version according to referee
remarks v4: revised version according to referee remark
First measurements of spin correlations in the np -> d pi^0 reaction
The transverse spin correlations Axx and Ayy in the np-> d pi^0 reaction have
been measured for the first time in quasi-free kinematics at the COSY-ANKE
facility using a polarised deuteron beam incident on a polarised hydrogen cell
target. The results obtained for neutron energies close to 353 MeV and 600 MeV
are in good agreement with the partial wave analysis of data on the
isospin-related pp-> d pi^+ reaction, though the present results cover also the
small-angle region, which was largely absent from these data
Coherent pion production in proton-deuteron collisions
Values of the proton analysing power in the
reactions at 350-360~MeV
per nucleon were obtained by using a polarised proton beam incident on a
deuterium cluster-jet target and with a polarised deuteron beam incident on a
target cell filled with polarised hydrogen. These results have a much larger
angular coverage than existing data. First measurements are also presented of
the deuteron vector analysing power and the deuteron-proton spin correlations.
Data were also obtained on the deuteron-proton spin correlation and proton
analysing power at small angles at 600~MeV per nucleon, though the angular
coverage at this energy was much more restricted even when using a deuteron
beam. By combining the extrapolated values of the spin correlations to the
forward or backward directions with published measurements of the deuteron
tensor analysing powers, the relative phases between the two non-vanishing
amplitudes were evaluated.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Analysing powers and spin correlations in deuteron-proton charge exchange at 726 MeV
The charge exchange of vector polarised deuterons on a polarised hydrogen
target has been studied in a high statistics experiment at the COSY-ANKE
facility at a deuteron beam energy of Td = 726 MeV. By selecting two fast
protons at low relative energy E_{pp}, the measured analysing powers and spin
correlations are sensitive to interference terms between specific
neutron-proton charge-exchange amplitudes at a neutron kinetic energy of Tn ~
1/2 Td =363 MeV. An impulse approximation calculation, which takes into account
corrections due to the angular distribution in the diproton, describes
reasonably the dependence of the data on both E_{pp} and the momentum transfer.
This lends broad support to the current neutron-proton partial-wave solution
that was used in the estimation
Energy dependence of hard bremsstrahlung production in proton-proton collisions in the Delta(1232) region
Hard bremsstrahlung production in proton-proton collisions has been studied
with the ANKE spectrometer at COSY-Juelich in the energy range of 353-800 MeV
by detecting the final proton pair {pp}_s from the pp -> {pp}_s reaction with
very low excitation energy. Differential cross sections were measured at small
diproton c.m. angles from 0 to 20 degrees and the average over this angular
interval reveals a broad peak at a beam energy around 650 MeV with a FWHM of
about 220 MeV, suggesting the influence of Delta(1232)N intermediate states.
Comparison with deuteron photodisintegration shows that the cross section for
diproton production is up to two orders of magnitude smaller, due largely to
differences in the selection rules.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
Differential cross section and analysing power of the quasi-free pn -> {pp}_s pi- reaction at 353 MeV
In order to establish links between p-wave pion production in nucleon-nucleon
collisions and low energy three-nucleon scattering, an extensive programme of
experiments on pion production is currently underway at COSY-ANKE. The final
proton pair is measured at very low excitation energy, leading to an S-wave
diproton, denoted here as {pp}_s. By using a deuterium target we have obtained
data on the differential cross section and analysing power of the quasi-free
pol{p}n -> {pp}_s pi^- reaction at 353 MeV. The spectator proton p_sp was
either measured directly in silicon tracking telescopes or reconstructed using
the momentum of a detected pi^-. Both observables can be described in terms of
s-, p-, and d-wave pion production amplitudes. Taken together with the
analogous data on the pol{p}p -> {pp}_s pi^0 reaction, full partial wave
decompositions of both processes were carried out.Comment: The interested reader should also study the paper on pizero
production by D.Tsirkov et al., which has also been submitted to the arXi
Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on surgery for indeterminate thyroid nodules (THYCOVID): a retrospective, international, multicentre, cross-sectional study
Background Since its outbreak in early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has diverted resources from non-urgent and elective procedures, leading to diagnosis and treatment delays, with an increased number of neoplasms at advanced stages worldwide. The aims of this study were to quantify the reduction in surgical activity for indeterminate thyroid nodules during the COVID-19 pandemic; and to evaluate whether delays in surgery led to an increased occurrence of aggressive tumours.Methods In this retrospective, international, cross-sectional study, centres were invited to participate in June 22, 2022; each centre joining the study was asked to provide data from medical records on all surgical thyroidectomies consecutively performed from Jan 1, 2019, to Dec 31, 2021. Patients with indeterminate thyroid nodules were divided into three groups according to when they underwent surgery: from Jan 1, 2019, to Feb 29, 2020 (global prepandemic phase), from March 1, 2020, to May 31, 2021 (pandemic escalation phase), and from June 1 to Dec 31, 2021 (pandemic decrease phase). The main outcomes were, for each phase, the number of surgeries for indeterminate thyroid nodules, and in patients with a postoperative diagnosis of thyroid cancers, the occurrence of tumours larger than 10 mm, extrathyroidal extension, lymph node metastases, vascular invasion, distant metastases, and tumours at high risk of structural disease recurrence. Univariate analysis was used to compare the probability of aggressive thyroid features between the first and third study phases. The study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05178186.Findings Data from 157 centres (n=49 countries) on 87 467 patients who underwent surgery for benign and malignant thyroid disease were collected, of whom 22 974 patients (18 052 [78 center dot 6%] female patients and 4922 [21 center dot 4%] male patients) received surgery for indeterminate thyroid nodules. We observed a significant reduction in surgery for indeterminate thyroid nodules during the pandemic escalation phase (median monthly surgeries per centre, 1 center dot 4 [IQR 0 center dot 6-3 center dot 4]) compared with the prepandemic phase (2 center dot 0 [0 center dot 9-3 center dot 7]; p<0 center dot 0001) and pandemic decrease phase (2 center dot 3 [1 center dot 0-5 center dot 0]; p<0 center dot 0001). Compared with the prepandemic phase, in the pandemic decrease phase we observed an increased occurrence of thyroid tumours larger than 10 mm (2554 [69 center dot 0%] of 3704 vs 1515 [71 center dot 5%] of 2119; OR 1 center dot 1 [95% CI 1 center dot 0-1 center dot 3]; p=0 center dot 042), lymph node metastases (343 [9 center dot 3%] vs 264 [12 center dot 5%]; OR 1 center dot 4 [1 center dot 2-1 center dot 7]; p=0 center dot 0001), and tumours at high risk of structural disease recurrence (203 [5 center dot 7%] of 3584 vs 155 [7 center dot 7%] of 2006; OR 1 center dot 4 [1 center dot 1-1 center dot 7]; p=0 center dot 0039).Interpretation Our study suggests that the reduction in surgical activity for indeterminate thyroid nodules during the COVID-19 pandemic period could have led to an increased occurrence of aggressive thyroid tumours. However, other compelling hypotheses, including increased selection of patients with aggressive malignancies during this period, should be considered. We suggest that surgery for indeterminate thyroid nodules should no longer be postponed even in future instances of pandemic escalation.Funding None.Copyright (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
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