Charged-Particle Multiplicity in <span class="aps-inline-formula"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mrow><msup><mrow><mi>π</mi></mrow><mrow><mo>−</mo></mrow></msup></mrow></math></span>-Nucleus Interactions at 100 and 175 GeV/<i>c</i>

W. Busza; J. E. Elias; D. F. Jacobs; P. A. Swartz; C. C. Young; M. R. Sogard

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.34.836

Charged-Particle Multiplicity in $π^{-}$ -Nucleus Interactions at 100 and 175 GeV/c

W. Busza, J. E. Elias, D. F. Jacobs, P. A. Swartz, C. C. Young, and M. R. Sogard

Phys. Rev. Lett. 34, 836 – Published 31 March 1975

Abstract

The space-time evolution of particle production at high energies was investigated by measuring the charged multiplicity in $π^{-}$ -nucleus collisions at 100 and 175 GeV/c. We find that (a) the forward multiplicity (in the $π p$ center-of-mass system) is independent of the target nucleus; (b) the backward multiplicity is approximately proportional to the nuclear thickness; and (c) the data are consistent with the assumption that the absorption cross section of the incident particle characterizes the multiplication process.