Meson-production experiments at COSY-Juelich

Selected results from experiments at COSY-Juelich are presented: an attempt to measure the mass of the eta meson with high precision (ANKE facility), first steps towards the detection of rare eta decays (WASA), and several measurements of KKbar-pair production (ANKE, COSY-11, MOMO).Comment: Proceedings of QNP2009, Beijing, Sept. 2009; to be published in Chinese Physics C. 6 pages, 5 figure

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

Overcoming synecdoche: why practice development and quality improvement approaches should be better integrated

Commentary on: Lavery, G. (2016) Quality improvement – rival or ally of practice development? International Practice Development Journal. Vol. 6. No. 1. Article 1

RV POSEIDON Cruise Report POS420 COWACSS Biological observation and sampling of cold-water corals to investigate impacts on climate change

Trondheim – (Kristiansund) – Kiel 08. – (25.) – 30.09.201

The ABC Effect in Double-Pionic Nuclear Fusion and a pn Resonance as its Possible Origin

The ABC effect -- a long-standing puzzle in double-pionic fusion -- has been reexamined by the first exclusive and kinematically complete measurements of solid statistics for the fusion reactions $pn \to d\pi^0\pi^0$, $pd \to ^3$He$\pi\pi$ and $dd \to ^4$He$\pi\pi$ using the WASA detector, first at CELSIUS and recently at COSY -- the latter with a statistics increased by another two orders of magnitude. In all cases we observe a huge low-mass enhancement in the $\pi\pi$-invariant mass accompanied by a pronounced $\Delta\Delta$ excitation. For the most basic fusion reaction, the $pn \to d\pi^0\pi^0$ reaction, we observe in addition a very pronounced resonance-like energy dependence in the total cross section with a maximum 90 MeV below the $\Delta\Delta$ mass and a width of only 50 MeV, which is five times smaller than expected from a conventional $t$-channel $\Delta\Delta$ excitation. This reveals the ABC effect to be the consequence of a s-channel resonance with the formfactor of this dibaryonic state being reflected in the low-mass enhancement of the $\pi\pi$-invariant mass. From the fusion reactions to $^3$He and $^4$He we learn that this resonance is robust enough to survive even in nuclei.Comment: conference proceedings PANIC 0

\u27Trust\u27 and \u27confidence\u27 as socio-technical problems in the transformation of energy systems

Background: For the development of a sustainable energy system, the public’s contribution to the sustainment of the system’s current operations will become vital. The public’s role is expected to change from that of passive service abiders to active service providers, as anticipated by visions of prosumers, smart grids, demand side management, virtual power plants, and electric vehicle management. Smart technology and new business models will increase system complexity and the experience of uncertainty and risk for all parties. Actionability of the public’s participation in the opportunities arising from the transformation of energy systems will become a problem. Methods: With a qualitative functionalist method, we analyze the prerequisites of the public’s participation: the capacity of social mechanisms, such as trust, for the solution of social problems. Functional problems affect the continuation of communication, i.e., the possibility of the sustainment of social reality. We isolate three case studies that illustrate concrete effects of trust, distrust, and confidence on three parties, respectively: consumers, investors, and those affected by grid extensions. Results and conclusions: We argue that the social mechanisms of trust and confidence are more vital for consumers, investors, and those affected than previous research has noticed. These mechanisms determine the achievement of sustainability in energy systems by sustaining actionability as a favorable expectation (trust, confidence), or an unfavorable expectation (lack of trust, distrust). Even lack of trust and distrust can be valuable contributors on the road to sustainability, since they uncover flaws and setbacks of a fledgling smart grid

Production of a0a_0-mesons in pp and pn reactions

We investigate the cross section for the reaction $NN \to NNa_0$ near threshold and at medium energies. An effective Lagrangian approach with one-pion exchange is applied to analyze different contributions to the cross section for different isospin channels. The Reggeon exchange mechanism is also considered. The results are used to calculate the contribution of the $a_0$ meson to the cross sections and invariant $K \bar K$ mass distributions of the reactions $pp\to pn K^+\bar K^0$ and $pp\to pp K^+K^-$. It is found that the experimental observation of $a_0^+$ mesons in the reaction $pp\to pn K^+\bar K^0$ is much more promising than the observation of $a_0^0$ mesons in the reaction $pp\to pp K^+K^-$.Comment: 26 pages, including 11 eps figures, to be bublished in J. Phys.