38 research outputs found
Measurement of the production of charged pions by protons on a tantalum target
A measurement of the double-differential cross-section for the production of
charged pions in proton--tantalum collisions emitted at large angles from the
incoming beam direction is presented. The data were taken in 2002 with the HARP
detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN PS. The pions were produced by proton
beams in a momentum range from 3 \GeVc to 12 \GeVc hitting a tantalum target
with a thickness of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The angular and
momentum range covered by the experiment (100 \MeVc \le p < 800 \MeVc and
0.35 \rad \le \theta <2.15 \rad) is of particular importance for the design
of a neutrino factory. The produced particles were detected using a
small-radius cylindrical time projection chamber (TPC) placed in a solenoidal
magnet. Track recognition, momentum determination and particle identification
were all performed based on the measurements made with the TPC. An elaborate
system of detectors in the beam line ensured the identification of the incident
particles. Results are shown for the double-differential cross-sections
at four incident
proton beam momenta (3 \GeVc, 5 \GeVc, 8 \GeVc and 12 \GeVc). In addition, the
pion yields within the acceptance of typical neutrino factory designs are shown
as a function of beam momentum. The measurement of these yields within a single
experiment eliminates most systematic errors in the comparison between rates at
different beam momenta and between positive and negative pion production.Comment: 49 pages, 31 figures. Version accepted for publication on Eur. Phys.
J.