Scattering processes

Scattering experiments: - to study details of the interactions between particles - to obtain information about the internal structure of atomic nuclei and their constituents In a typical scattering experiment: - target object to be studied, bombarded with a beam of particles with (mostly) well-defined energy - e.g.: a + b c + d
projectile reaction products

Target

Targets and Beams

Target - Solid, liquid or gas - In collider experiments, another beam of particle may serve as a target (e.g.: the e-p storage ring LEP at CERN in Geneva, the p-p storage ring Tevatron at FNAL in the USA) Beams: - Possible to produce beams of a broad variety of particles (e,p,n,heavy ions..). - Beam energies vary between 10-3 eV for cold neutrons up to 10 12 eV for p

Elastic Scattering

a + b a + b - Same particles present before and after the scattering - Target b remains in its ground state, absorbing the recoil momentum and changing its kinetic energy - Scattering angle and energy of a AND production angle and energy of b unambigously correlated - To resolve small target structures, larger beam energies required

 Largest wavelenght which can resolve structures of linear extension x:

D x
From Heisemberg s uncertainty principle, the corresponding particle momentum is: h p , x hc 200 MeV fm pc x x

Nuclei (few fm radius) beam of 10-100 MeV/c Nucleons (~0.8 fm radius) beam above 100 MeV/c Quarks beam of many GeV/c

Inelastic Scattering
a + b a + b* c+d

- Part of the kinetic energy transferred from a to the target b excites it into a higher energy state b* - The excited state will return to the ground state by emitting a light particle OR it may decay into two or more different particles - A measurement of a reaction in which only the scattered particle a is observed is called exclusive measurement - If all reactions products are detected inclusive measurement

The interaction cross-section

- The reaction rates measured, together with the energy spectra and angular distributions of the reaction products give information about the shape of the interaction -Most important quantity for description and interpretation of these reactions is the cross-section (which gives the probability of a reaction between 2 colliding particles)

Geometrical cross-section
Consider an idealised experiment: d = thickness of scattering target Nb = scattering centre b nb = particle density A = beam area
Nr. Particles/ Unit area na

Cross sectional area b density: nb d

Each target particle has a cross-sectional area b Target is bombarded with a monoenergetic beam of point-like particles a

- Reaction: whenever a particle hits a target particle (does not matter here whether eleastic or inelastic) -Total reaction rate N = nr of reactions per unit time = difference in Na upstream and downstream the target -Nr. of particles hitting target/ unit area / unit time = a = Na = na va (flux [area x time]-1) A N b = nb Ad -Reaction rate N = a N b b (if no overlap between scattering centres)

-Nr. of target particles within the beam area =

-The area presented by a scattering centre to the incoming projectile a is the geometric reaction cross-section

N nr of reaction per unit time b = = a N b particles per unit time per unit area x scattering centres This definition assumes a homogeneous constant beam (e.g. neutrons from a reactor)

The interaction cross-section

- Cross-section = `area` denoted by [L2] - Independent of the specific experimental design - 1 barn =1b = 10-28 m2 nucleon a2N, aN 1fm 3.1 b 1 millibarn = 1 mb = 10-31 m2 atom a20, a0 = 1 A 31 mb pp (10 GeV) ~40 mb p (10 GeV) ~70 fb

-But typical total cross sections at a beam energy of 10 GeV

Cross Sections
- In high energy p-p scattering, the geometric extent of the particle is comparable to their interaction range - However reaction probability for two particles can be very different to what geometric considerations can imply. e.g.: a strong energy dependence is also observed -Shape, strength and range of the interaction potential, primarily determine the effective cross-sectional area

tot

nr of reactions per unit time = beam particles per unit time x scattering centres per unit area

tot = el + inel

Luminosity
- L = a Nb is called luminosity. Dimension: [(areaxtime)-1] L = a Nb = Na nb d = na va Nb - Analogous equation for the case of two particle beams colliding in a storage ring: - Assume j particle packets, each of Na or Nb particles injected into a ring of circumference U. The two packet types travels with velocity v in opposite direction. Steered by magnetic fields, they collide at an interaction point jv/U times per unit time L= N a N b j v / U A

- For a Gaussian distribution of the beam particles around the beam centres: A = 4xy With x and y horizontal and vertical standard deviations -To achieve a high luminosity, beam must be focused at the interaction point into the smallest possible A Typical beam diamaters: tenths of mm - In storage ring the integrated luminosity is used L Nr. of reactions = L e.g.: = 1 nb, L = 100 pb-1 105 reactions expected

Differential Cross Section

- Only a fraction of all the reactions are measured. A detector of area AD is placed at a distance r and at an angle with respect to the beam direction AD r =AD/r2

- Rate of reactions seen by detector: d (E, ) N ( E , , ) = L d

- If the detector can determine the energy E of the scattered particle the doubly differential cross section: d 2 (E, E' , ) ddE ' -The total cross section tot is given by:

d 2 ( E , E ' , ) tot ( E ) = ddE ' ddE ' 0 4

' Emax

AD r =AD/r2

The Golden Rule

- Cross sections can be determined from reaction rate N in experiment. And in theory? - N depends on the properties of the interaction potential described by the Hamilton operator Hint. Hint transforms the initial state wave-function i into the final-state wave function f. The transition matrix element is:

Mfi = f |H int | i = * f H int i dV

also called probability amplitude, includes coupling constants involved, propagator terms and any angular dependence of the reaction rate.

- Reaction rate N will depend also from final states available to the reaction - According to uncertainty principle, each particle occupies a volume: h3 = ( 2h)3 in phase space (six-dimensional space of momentum and position) - Consider a particle scattered into a volume V and into a momentum interval between pand p+dp In momentum space: a spherical shell with inner radius p and thickness dp V = 4p2dp - Excluding processes where the spin changes, the nr of final states available is: V 4p '2 dn ( p ' ) = dp ' 3 (2h )

- Energy and momentum of a particle are connected by:

dE' = v' dp'

- Hence, density of final states in the interval dE

dn( E ' ) V 4p'2 ( E ') = = dE ' v'(2h )3

- Connection between reaction rate, transition matrix element and density of final state, expressed by Fermis second golden rule:
2 2 W= M if ( E ' ) h

Na = na va and - We saw already that: a = A -Then W =

N ( E ) va = Nb N a V

N = a N b b

V = Na/na = spatial volume occupied by beam particles -The cross section is:
2 2 = M if ( E ' )V h va

-The Golden rule applies to both scattering and spectroscopic processes (e.g.: decay, excitation of particle resonances etc..) - In this case W = 1/ (W can be derived from lifetime or read off from the energy width E = h / )

Is the energy density dN/dE of final states, i.e., the number of states in phase space available to the product particles, per unit interval of the total energy W measures a rate per unit time Neglecting any spin effect, the nr. of states in phase space directed into a solid angle d and enclosed in a physical volume V is:

V 2 dN = p dpd 3 (2h )
Final states will contain the product f = c d 1 For each i we need to insert a normalization factor V V and 1/V simplify. Same for the initial state

In the cms: d W W 2 M if = = = d i vi h vi

1 2 dp f pf 3 (2h) dE0

pf =

E0 = Ec + Ed
2 Conservation of energy gives: p 2 + m f c + 2 p2 + m f d = E0

Or:

dp f Ec Ed 1 = = dE0 E0 p f v f

Finally:

d 1 (a + b c + d ) = M if 2 4 d 4 h

p2 f vi v f

 Spin

Suppose the initial-state particles are unpolarised. Total number of final spin substates available is: gf = (2sc+1)(2sd+1) Total number of initial spin substates: gi = (2sa+1)(2sb+1)

One has to average the transition probability over all possible initial states, all equally probable, and sum over all final states Multiply by factor gf /gi

a+bc+d

All the so-called crossed reactions are allowed as well, and described by the same matrix-elements (but different kinematic constraints)

a+c b +d a+d c+b ab +c+d c+d a+b