Polarized photons in radiative muon capture

We discuss the measurement of polarized photons arising from radiative muon capture. The spectrum of left circularly polarized photons or equivalently the circular polarization of the photons emitted in radiative muon capture on hydrogen is quite sensitive to the strength of the induced pseudoscalar coupling constant $g_P$. A measurement of either of these quantities, although very difficult, might be sufficient to resolve the present puzzle resulting from the disagreement between the theoretical prediction for $g_P$ and the results of a recent experiment. This sensitivity results from the absence of left-handed radiation from the muon line and from the fact that the leading parts of the radiation from the hadronic lines, as determined from the chiral power counting rules of heavy-baryon chiral perturbation theory, all contain pion poles.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

Capture rate and neutron helicity asymmetry for ordinary muon capture on hydrogen

Applying heavy-baryon chiral perturbation theory to ordinary muon capture (OMC) on a proton, we calculate the capture rate and neutron helicity asymmetry up to next-to-next-to-leading order. For the singlet hyperfine state, we obtain the capture rate Gamma_0 = 695 sec^{-1} while, for the triplet hyperfine state, we obtain the capture rate Gamma_1 = 11.9 sec^{-1} and the neutron asymmetry alpha_1 = 0.93. If the existing formalism is used to relate these atomic capture rates to Gamma_{liq}, the OMC rate in liquid hydrogen, then Gamma_{liq} corresponding to our improved values of Gamma_0 and Gamma_1 is found to be significantly larger than the experimental value, primarily due to the updated larger value of g_A. We argue that this apparent difficulity may be correlated to the specious anomaly recently reported for mu^- + p to n + nu_mu + gamma, and we suggest a possibility to remove these two "problems" simply and simultaneously by reexamining the molecular physics input that underlies the conventional analysis of Gamma_{liq}.Comment: 14 pages, 1 figur

Radiative pion capture by a nucleon

The differential cross sections for $\pi^- p \to \gamma n$ and $\pi^+ n \to \gamma p$ are computed up to $O(p^3)$ in heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory (HBChPT). The expressions at $O(p)$ and $O(p^2)$ have no free parameters. There are three unknown parameters at $O(p^3)$, low energy constants of the HBChPT Lagrangian, which are determined by fitting to experimental data. Two acceptable fits are obtained, which can be separated by comparing with earlier dispersion relation calculations of the inverse process. Expressions for the multipoles, with emphasis on the p-wave multipoles, are obtained and evaluated at threshold. Generally the results obtained from the best of the two fits are in good agreement with the dispersion relation predictions.Comment: 24 pages, Latex, using RevTe

Muon capture by a proton in heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory

The matrix element for muon capture by a proton is calculated to O(p^3) within heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory using the new O(p^3) Lagrangian of Ecker and Mojzis. External nucleon fields are renormalized using the appropriate definition of the wave function renormalization factor Z_N. Our expression for Z_N differs somewhat from that found in existing literature, but is the one which is consistent with the Lagrangian we use and the one which ensures, within our approach, the nonrenormalization of the vector coupling as required by the conserved vector current. Expressions for the standard muon capture form factors are derived and compared to experimental data and we determine three of the coefficients of the Ecker - Mojzis Lagrangian, namely, b_7, b_{19}, and b_{23}.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX, using revte

Field transformations and simple models illustrating the impossibility of measuring off-shell effects

In the context of simple models illustrating field transformations in Lagrangian field theories we discuss the impossibility of measuring off-shell effects in nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung, Compton scattering, and related processes. To that end we introduce a simple phenomenological Lagrangian describing nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung and perform an appropriate change of variables leading to different off-shell behavior in the nucleon-nucleon amplitude as well as the photon-nucleon vertex. As a result we obtain a class of equivalent Lagrangians, generating identical S-matrix elements, of which the original Lagrangian is but one representative. We make use of this property in order to show that what appears as an off-shell effect in an S-matrix element for one Lagrangian may originate in a contact term from an equivalent Lagrangian. By explicit calculation we demonstrate for the case of nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung as well as nucleon Compton scattering the equivalence of observables from which we conclude that off-shell effects cannot in any unambiguous way be extracted from an S-matrix element. Finally, we also discuss some implications of introducing off-shell effects on a phenomenological basis, resulting from the requirement that the description of one process be consistent with that of other processes described by the same Lagrangian.Comment: 19 pages, Latex, using RevTe

Chiral Lagrangians

An overview of the field of Chiral Lagrangians is given. This includes Chiral Perturbation Theory and resummations to extend it to higher energies, applications to the muon anomalous magnetic moment, $\epsilon^\prime/\epsilon$ and others.Comment: Invited talk at the XX International Symposium on Lepton and Photon Interactions at High Energies 23rd-28th July 2001, Rome Italy, 15 pages, uses ws-p10x7.cls Changes: 2 references added, numbers in g-2 hadronic changed slightl

Isospin violation and the proton's neutral weak magnetic form factor

The effects of isospin violation on the neutral weak magnetic form factor of the proton are studied using two-flavour chiral perturbation theory. The first nonzero contributions appear at O(p^4) in the small-momentum expansion, and the O(p^5) corrections are also calculated. The leading contributions from an explicit Delta(1232) isomultiplet are included as well. At such a high order in the chiral expansion, one might have expected a large number of unknown parameters to contribute. However, it is found that no unknown parameters can appear within loop diagrams, and a single tree-level counterterm at O(p^4) is sufficient to absorb all divergences. The momentum dependence of the neutral weak magnetic form factor is not affected by this counterterm.Comment: 26 pages including 9 figure

Delta--Excitation and Exchange Corrections for NN--Bremsstrahlung

The role of the relativistic amplitudes for a number of ${\cal O}(k)$ processes usually neglected in potential model calculations of NN--bremsstrahlung is investigated. In particular, we consider the $\Delta$--excitation pole contributions related to the one--pion and one--rho exchange and in addition include the exchange contributions induced by the radiative $\omega,\,\rho \to \pi \gamma$ decays. The contributions are calculated from relativistic Born amplitudes fitted to $\Delta$--production and absorption data in the energy range up to 1 GeV and then used to supplement potential model and soft photon calculations for nucleon--nucleon bremsstrahlung. The effects on $NN\gamma$--observables, although moderate in general, are found to be important in some kinematic domains.Comment: 15 pages in LaTex, using Revtex, 6 figures as uufile'd, compressed Postscript file included, TRIUMF preprint TRI-PP-94-9

Meson resonances, large N_c and chiral symmetry

We investigate the implications of large N_c and chiral symmetry for the mass spectra of meson resonances. Unlike for most other mesons, the mass matrix of the light scalars deviates strongly from its large-N_c limit. We discuss the possible assignments for the lightest scalar nonet that survives in the large-N_c limit.Comment: 14 page