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

Systematic Study of Two-Pion Production in NN Collisions -- from Single-Baryon to Di-Baryon Excitations

The two-pion production in nucleon-nucleon collisions has been studied by exclusive and kinematically complete experiments from threshold up to $T_p$ = 1.36 GeV at CELSIUS-WASA. At near-threshold energies the total and differential distributions for the $\pi^+\pi^-$ and $\pi^0\pi^0$ channels are dominated by Roper excitation and its decay into $N\sigma$ and $\Delta\pi$ channels. At beam energies $T_p >$ 1.1 GeV the $\Delta\Delta$ excitation governs the two-pion production process. In the $\pi^+\pi^+$ channel evidence is found for the excitation of a higher-lying I=3/2 resonance, favorably the $\Delta(1600)$. The isovector fusion processes leading to the deuteron and to quasi-stable $^2$He, respectively, %with the production of an isovector pion-pair exhibit no or only a modest ABC-effect, {\it i.e.} low-mass enhancement in the $\pi\pi$-invariant mass spectrum, and can be described by conventional $t$-channel $\Delta\Delta$ excitation. On the other hand, the isoscalar fusion process to the deuteron %with the production of an isoscalar pion-pair exhibits a dramatic ABC-effect correlated with a narrow resonance-like energy dependence in the total cross section with a width of only 50 MeV and situated at a mass 90 MeV below the $\Delta\Delta$ mass.Comment: Proceedings HADRON0

Anisotropy in the pion angular distribution of the reaction pp -> pp pi0 at 400 MeV

The reaction pp -> pp pi0 was studied with the WASA detector at the CELSIUS storage ring. The center of mass angular distribution of the pi0 was obtained by detection of the gamma decay products together with the two outgoing protons, and found to be anisotropic with a negative second derivative slope, in agreement with the theoretical predictions from a microscopic calculation.Comment: Revtex 4 style, 5 pages 7 figures, PACS numbers:13.60.Le, 13.75.Cs, 21.45.+v, 25.10.+

Exclusive Measurements of pp -> dpi+pi0: Double-Pionic Fusion without ABC Effect

Exclusive measurements of the reaction pp -> dpi+pi0 have been carried out at T_p = 1.1 GeV at the CELSIUS storage ring using the WASA detector. The isovector pi+pi0 channel exhibits no enhancement at low invariant pipi masses, i. e. no ABC effect. The differential distributions are in agreement with the conventional t-channel Delta-Delta excitation process, which also accounts for the observed energy dependence of the total cross section. This is an update of a previously published version -- see important note at the end of the article

Exclusive Measurements of pd→3Heππpd\to ^3He \pi\pi : the ABCABC Effect Revisited

Exclusive measurements of the reactions $pd\to$ $^3He \pi^+ \pi^-$ and $pd\to$ $^3He \pi^0\pi^0$ have been carried out at $T_p=0.895$ GeV at the CELSIUS storage ring using the WASA detector. The $\pi^+\pi^-$ channel evidences a pronounced enhancement at low invariant $\pi\pi$ masses - as anticipated from previous inclusive measurements of the ABC effect. This enhancement is seen to be even much larger in the isoscalar $\pi^0\pi^0$ channel. The differential distributions prove this enhancement to be of scalar-isoscalar nature. $\Delta\Delta$ calculations give a good description of the data, if a boundstate condition is imposed for the intermediate $\Delta\Delta$ system.Comment: extended version, 8 pages, 7 figures, theoretical model calculations adde

Double-Pionic Fusion of Nuclear Systems and the ABCEffect -- Aproaching a Puzzle by Exclusive and Kinematically Complete Measurements

The ABC effect - a puzzling low-mass enhancement in the $\pi\pi$ invariant mass spectrum - is well-known from inclusive measurements of two-pion production in nuclear fusion reactions. Here we report on first exclusive and kinematically complete measurements of the most basic double pionic fusion reaction $pn \to d \pi^0\pi^0$ at 1.03 and 1.35 GeV. The measurements, which have been carried out at CELSIUS-WASA, reveal the ABC effect to be a $(\pi\pi)_{I=L=0}$ channel phenomenon associated with both a resonance-like energy dependence in the integral cross section and the formation of a $\Delta\Delta$ system in the intermediate state. A corresponding simple s-channel resonance ansatz provides a surprisingly good description of the data