Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics

University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

1997

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Separating K+/- From Pi+/- Using In-Flight Decays To Mu+/- + Nu, Wilfred J. Braithwaite, Edwin S. Braithwaite Jan 1997

Separating K+/- From Pi+/- Using In-Flight Decays To Mu+/- + Nu, Wilfred J. Braithwaite, Edwin S. Braithwaite

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

A method is presented for completely distinguishing between charged kaons and charged pions by using their charged muon (plus neutrino) decays (with neutrinos undetected) for meson laboratory momenta up to 1000 MeV/c. When either a charged kaon or a charged pion decays into a muon and a neutrino, momentum-energy (four-momentum) conservation will be used to provide unique "kinematic trajectories" for distinguishing kaon decays from pion decays when the change in three-momentum of the muon from that of either parent kaon or pion is measured (or simulated). Ina magnetic field, observation of a tracked particle showing a "kink" and/or a change …


Coplanarity Test For Selecting A Pair Of Charged-Particle Tracks Resulting From A Single Neutral-Particle Decay, Edwin S. Braithwaite, Wilfred J. Braithwaite Jan 1997

Coplanarity Test For Selecting A Pair Of Charged-Particle Tracks Resulting From A Single Neutral-Particle Decay, Edwin S. Braithwaite, Wilfred J. Braithwaite

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

It is hard to determine directly the position of a neutral subatomic particle, but when such a particle decays into a pair of charged particles, it is easy to determine the positions of the charged decay particles and thereby infer the position of the parent particle at the time of its decay. A minimum of two coordinate points for each of the two decay particles is needed to reconstruct the position of the parent vertex. The mathematics of the reconstruction process is inherently interesting, and it can be used to demonstrate to students the utility of some of the most …