arXiv subjects

J. Becker

Publications and source records attributed to J. Becker.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Challenges in QCD matter physics - The Compressed Baryonic Matter experiment at FAIR

Substantial experimental and theoretical efforts worldwide are devoted to explore the phase diagram of strongly interacting matter. At LHC and top RHIC energies, QCD matter is studied at very high temperatures and nearly vanishing net-baryon densities. There is evidence that a Quark-Gluon-Plasma (QGP) was created at experiments at RHIC and LHC. The transition from the QGP back to the hadron gas is found to be a smooth cross over. For larger net-baryon densities and lower temperatures, it is expected that the QCD phase diagram exhibits a rich structure, such as a first-order phase transition between hadronic and partonic matter which terminates in a critical point, or exotic phases like quarkyonic matter. The discovery of these landmarks would be a breakthrough in our understanding of the strong interaction and is therefore in the focus of various high-energy heavy-ion research programs. The Compressed Baryonic Matter (CBM) experiment at FAIR will play a unique role in the exploration of the QCD phase diagram in the region of high net-baryon densities, because it is designed to run at unprecedented interaction rates. High-rate operation is the key prerequisite for high-precision measurements of multi-differential observables and of rare diagnostic probes which are sensitive to the dense phase of the nuclear fireball. The goal of the CBM experiment at SIS100 (sqrt(s_NN) = 2.7 - 4.9 GeV) is to discover fundamental properties of QCD matter: the phase structure at large baryon-chemical potentials (mu_B > 500 MeV), effects of chiral symmetry, and the equation-of-state at high density as it is expected to occur in the core of neutron stars. In this article, we review the motivation for and the physics programme of CBM, including activities before the start of data taking in 2022, in the context of the worldwide efforts to explore high-density QCD matter.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2015

The Expanding Fireball of Nova Delphini 2013

A classical nova occurs when material accreting onto the surface of a white dwarf in a close binary system ignites in a thermonuclear runaway. Complex structures observed in the ejecta at late stages could result from interactions with the companion during the common envelope phase. Alternatively, the explosion could be intrinsically bipolar, resulting from a localized ignition on the surface of the white dwarf or as a consequence of rotational distortion. Studying the structure of novae during the earliest phases is challenging because of the high spatial resolution needed to measure their small sizes. Here we report near-infrared interferometric measurements of the angular size of Nova Delphini 2013, starting from one day after the explosion and continuing with extensive time coverage during the first 43 days. Changes in the apparent expansion rate can be explained by an explosion model consisting of an optically thick core surrounded by a diffuse envelope. The optical depth of the ejected material changes as it expands. We detect an ellipticity in the light distribution, suggesting a prolate or bipolar structure that develops as early as the second day. Combining the angular expansion rate with radial velocity measurements, we derive a geometric distance to the nova of 4.54 +/- 0.59 kpc from the Sun.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

Study of $ψ(3686)\toπ^0 h_c, h_c\toγη_c$ via $η_c$ exclusive decays

The process $ψ(3686) \to π^0 h_c, h_c \to γη_c$ has been studied with a data sample of $106 \pm 4$ million $ψ(3686)$ events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII storage ring. The mass and width of the $P$-wave charmonium spin-singlet state $h_c(^1P_1)$ are determined by simultaneously fitting distributions of the $π^0$ recoil mass for 16 exclusive $η_c$ decay modes. The results, $M(\hc) = 3525.31 \pm 0.11 {\rm (stat.)} \pm 0.14 {\rm (syst.)}$\,MeV/$c^2$ and $Γ(\hc) = 0.70 \pm 0.28 \pm 0.22$\,MeV, are consistent with and more precise than previous measurements. We also determine the branching ratios for the 16 exclusive $η_c$ decay modes, five of which have not been measured previously. New measurements of the $η_c$ line-shape parameters in the $E1$ transition $h_c\toγη_c$ are made by selecting candidates in the $h_c$ signal sample and simultaneously fitting the hadronic mass spectra for the 16 $η_c$ decay channels. The resulting $η_c$ mass and width values are $M(η_c) = 2984.49 \pm 1.16 \pm 0.52$\,MeV/$c^2$ and $Γ(η_c) = 36.4 \pm 3.2 \pm 1.7$\,MeV.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Observation of $χ_{c1}$ decays into vector meson pairs $ϕϕ$, $ωω$, and $ωϕ$

Decays of $χ_{c1}$ to vector meson pairs $ϕϕ$, $ωω$ and $ωϕ$ are observed for the first time using $(106\pm4)\times 10^6$ $\psip$ events accumulated at the BESIII detector at the BEPCII $e^+e^-$ collider. The branching fractions are measured to be $(4.4\pm 0.3\pm 0.5)\times 10^{-4}$, $(6.0\pm 0.3\pm 0.7)\times 10^{-4}$, and $(2.2\pm 0.6\pm 0.2)\times 10^{-5}$, for $χ_{c1}\to ϕϕ$, $ωω$, and $ωϕ$, respectively. The observation of $χ_{c1}$ decays into a pair of vector mesons $ϕϕ$, $ωω$ and $ωϕ$ indicates that the hadron helicity selection rule is significantly violated in $χ_{cJ}$ decays. In addition, the measurement of $χ_{cJ}\to ωϕ$ gives the rate of doubly OZI-suppressed decay. Branching fractions for $χ_{c0}$ and $χ_{c2}$ decays into other vector meson pairs are also measured with improved precision.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Observation of a charged charmoniumlike structure in $e^+e^- \to (D^{} \bar{D}^{})^{\pm} π^\mp$ at $\sqrt{s}=4.26$GeV

We study the process $e^+e^- \to (D^{*} \bar{D}^{*})^{\pm} π^\mp$ at a center-of-mass energy of 4.26GeV using a 827pb$^{-1}$ data sample obtained with the BESIII detector at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider. Based on a partial reconstruction technique, the Born cross section is measured to be $(137\pm9\pm15)$pb. We observe a structure near the $(D^{*} \bar{D}^{*})^{\pm}$ threshold in the $π^\mp$ recoil mass spectrum, which we denote as the $Z^{\pm}_c(4025)$. The measured mass and width of the structure are $(4026.3\pm2.6\pm3.7)$MeV/c$^2$ and $(24.8\pm5.6\pm7.7)$MeV, respectively. Its production ratio $\frac{σ(e^+e^-\to Z^{\pm}_c(4025)π^\mp \to (D^{*} \bar{D}^{*})^{\pm} π^\mp)}{σ(e^+e^-\to (D^{*} \bar{D}^{*})^{\pm} π^\mp)}$ is determined to be $0.65\pm0.09\pm0.06$. The first uncertainties are statistical and the second are systematic.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Intensity interferometry of single x-ray pulses from a synchrotron storage ring

We report on measurements of second-order intensity correlations at the high brilliance storage ring PETRA III using a prototype of the newly developed Adaptive Gain Integrating Pixel Detector (AGIPD). The detector recorded individual synchrotron radiation pulses with an x-ray photon energy of 14.4 keV and repetition rate of about 5 MHz. The second-order intensity correlation function was measured simultaneously at different spatial separations that allowed to determine the transverse coherence length at these x-ray energies. The measured values are in a good agreement with theoretical simulations based on the Gaussian Schell-model.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2013

Observation of a charged charmoniumlike structure Z_c(4020) and search for the Z_c(3900) in e+e- to pi+pi-h_c

We study e+e- --> pi+pi-h_c at center-of-mass energies from 3.90 GeV to 4.42 GeV using data samples collected with the BESIII detector operating at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider. The Born cross sections are measured at 13 energies, and are found to be of the same order of magnitude as those of e+e- --> pi+pi-J/psi but with a different line shape. In the π^\pm h_c mass spectrum, a distinct structure, referred to as Z_c(4020), is observed at 4.02 GeV/c^2. The Z_c(4020) carries an electric charge and couples to charmonium. A fit to the π^\pm h_c invariant mass spectrum, neglecting possible interferences, results in a mass of (4022.9\pm 0.8\pm 2.7) MeV/c^2 and a width of (7.9\pm 2.7\pm 2.6) MeV for the Z_c(4020), where the first errors are statistical and the second systematic. No significant Z_c(3900) signal is observed, and upper limits on the Z_c(3900) production cross sections in π^\pm h_c at center-of-mass energies of 4.23 and 4.26 GeV are set.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Observation of a structure at 1.84 GeV/c$^2$ in the $3(π^+π^-)$ mass spectrum in $J/ψ\rightarrow γ3(π^+π^-)$ decays

With a sample of 225.3 million $J/ψ$ events taken with the BESIII detector, the decay $J/ψ\rightarrow γ3(π^+π^-)$ is analyzed. A structure at 1.84 GeV/c$^2$ is observed in the $3(π^+π^-)$ invariant mass spectrum with a statistical significance of 7.6$σ$ . The mass and width are measured to be $M=1842.2\pm 4.2^{+7.1}_{-2.6}$ MeV/c$^2$ and $Γ=83\pm 14 \pm 11$ MeV. The product branching fraction is determined to be $B(J/ψ\rightarrowγX(1840))\times B(X(1840)\rightarrow 3(π^+π^-))=(2.44\pm0.36^{+0.60}_{-0.74})\times 10^{-5}$. No $η^\prime$ signals are observed in the $3(π^+π^-)$ invariant mass spectrum, and the upper limit of the branching fraction for the decay $η^\prime\rightarrow 3(π^+π^-)$ is set to be $3.1\times10^{-5}$ at a 90% confidence level.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Discovery of very high energy gamma-ray emission from the BL Lac object PKS 0301-243 with H.E.S.S

The active galactic nucleus PKS 0301-243 (z=0.266) is a high-synchrotron-peaked BL Lac object that is detected at high energies (HE, 100 MeV < E < 100 GeV) by Fermi/LAT. This paper reports on the discovery of PKS 0301-243 at very high energies (E>100 GeV) by the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) from observations between September 2009 and December 2011 for a total live time of 34.9 hours. Gamma rays above 200 GeV are detected at a significance of 9.4σ. A hint of variability at the 2.5σ level is found. An integral flux I(E > 200 GeV) = (3.3 +/- 1.1_stat +/- 0.7_syst)e-12 ph cm^-2s^-1 and a photon index Γ = 4.6 +/- 0.7_stat +/- 0.2_syst are measured. Multi-wavelength light curves in HE, X-ray and optical bands show strong variability, and a minimal variability timescale of eight days is estimated from the optical light curve. A single-zone leptonic synchrotron self-Compton scenario satisfactorily reproduces the multi-wavelength data. In this model, the emitting region is out of equipartition and the jet is particle dominated. Because of its high redshift compared to other sources observed at TeV energies, the very high energy emission from PKS 0301-243 is attenuated by the extragalactic background light (EBL) and the measured spectrum is used to derive an upper limit on the opacity of the EBL.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Search for Dark Matter Annihilation Signals from the Fornax Galaxy Cluster with H.E.S.S

The Fornax galaxy cluster was observed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) for a total live time of 14.5 hours, searching for very-high-energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma-rays from dark matter (DM) annihilation. No significant signal was found in searches for point-like and extended emissions. Using several models of the DM density distribution, upper limits on the DM velocity-weighted annihilation cross-section as a function of the DM particle mass are derived. Constraints are derived for different DM particle models, such as those arising from Kaluza-Klein and supersymmetric models. Various annihilation final states are considered. Possible enhancements of the DM annihilation gamma-ray flux, due to DM substructures of the DM host halo, or from the Sommerfeld effect, are studied. Additional gamma-ray contributions from internal bremsstrahlung and inverse Compton radiation are also discussed. For a DM particle mass of 1 TeV, the exclusion limits at 95% of confidence level reach values of ~ 10^-23cm^3s^-1, depending on the DM particle model and halo properties. Additional contribution from DM substructures can improve the upper limits on <σv> by more than two orders of magnitude. At masses around 4.5 TeV, the enhancement by substructures and the Sommerfeld resonance effect results in a velocity-weighted annihilation cross-section upper limit at the level of <σv> ~ 10^-26cm^3s^-1.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Precision Measurements of ${\cal B}[ψ(3686) \to π^+π^- J/ψ]$ and ${\cal B}[J/ψ\to l^+l^-]$

Based on $(106.41 \pm 0.86)\times 10^{6}$ $ψ(3686)$ events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, the branching fractions of $ψ(3686) \to π^+π^- J/ψ$, $J/ψ\to e^+e^- $, and $J/ψ\to μ^+μ^-$ are measured. We obtain ${\cal B}[ψ(3686) \to π^+π^-J/ψ]=(34.98\pm 0.02\pm 0.45)%$, ${\cal B}[J/ψ\to e^+e^-] = (5.983 \pm 0.007 \pm 0.037)%$ and ${\cal B}[J/ψ\to μ^+μ^-] = (5.973 \pm 0.007 \pm 0.038)%$. The measurement of ${\cal B}[ψ(3686) \to π^{+}π^{-}J/ψ]$ confirms the CLEO-c measurement, and is apparently larger than the others. The measured $J/ψ$ leptonic decay branching fractions agree with previous experiments within one standard deviation. These results lead to ${\cal B}[J/ψ\to l^+l^-] = (5.978 \pm 0.005 \pm 0.040)%$ by averaging over the $e^{+}e^{-}$ and $μ^{+}μ^{-}$ channels and a ratio of ${\cal B}[J/ψ\to e^+e^-] / {\cal B}[J/ψ\to μ^+μ^-] = 1.0017 \pm 0.0017 \pm 0.0033$, which tests $e$-$μ$ universality at the four tenths of a percent level. All the measurements presented in this paper are the most precise in the world to date.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Study of $J/ψ\rightarrow ωp \bar{p}$ at BESIII

The decay $J/ψ\rightarrow ωp \bar{p}$ has been studied, using $225.3\times 10^{6}$ $J/ψ$ events accumulated at BESIII. No significant enhancement near the $p\bar{p}$ invariant-mass threshold (denoted as $X(p\bar{p})$) is observed. The upper limit of the branching fraction $\mathcal{B}(J/ψ\rightarrow ωX(p\bar{p}) \rightarrow ωp \bar{p})$ is determined to be $3.9\times10^{-6}$ at the 95% confidence level. The branching fraction of $J/ψ\rightarrow ωp \bar{p}$ is measured to be $\mathcal{B}(J/ψ\rightarrow ωp \bar{p}) =(9.0 \pm 0.2\ (\text{stat.})\pm 0.9\ (\text{syst.})) \times 10^{-4}$.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Performance tests of an AGIPD 0.4 assembly at the beamline P10 of PETRA III

The Adaptive Gain Integrating Pixel Detector (AGIPD) is a novel detector system, currently under development by a collaboration of DESY, the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland, the University of Hamburg and the University of Bonn, and is primarily designed for use at the European XFEL. To verify key features of this detector, an AGIPD 0.4 test chip assembly was tested at the P10 beamline of the PETRA III synchrotron at DESY. The test chip successfully imaged both the direct synchrotron beam and single 7.05 keV photons at the same time, demonstrating the large dynamic range required for XFEL experiments. X-ray scattering measurements from a test sample agree with standard measurements and show the chip's capability of observing dynamics at the microsecond time scale.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2013

Search for Baryonic Decays of ψ(3770) and ψ(4040)

By analyzing data samples of 2.9 fb^{-1} collected at \sqrt s=3.773 GeV, 482 pb^{-1} collected at \sqrt s=4.009 GeV and 67 pb^{-1} collected at \sqrt s=3.542, 3.554, 3.561, 3.600 and 3.650 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII storage ring, we search for ψ(3770) and ψ(4040) decay to baryonic final states, including Λ\barΛπ^+π^-, Λ\barΛπ^0, Λ\barΛη, Σ^+ \barΣ^-, Σ^0 \barΣ^0, Ξ^-\barΞ^+ and Ξ^0\barΞ^0 decays. None are observed, and upper limits are set at the 90% confidence level.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Observation of a charged charmoniumlike structure in e+e- to pi+pi-J/psi at \sqrt{s}=4.26 GeV

We study the process e+e- to pi+pi-J/psi at a center-of-mass energy of 4.260 GeV using a 525 pb^{-1} data sample collected with the BESIII detector operating at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider. The Born cross section is measured to be (62.9\pm 1.9\pm 3.7) pb, consistent with the production of the Y(4260). We observe a structure at around 3.9 GeV/c^2 in the π^\pm J/psi mass spectrum, which we refer to as the Z_c(3900). If interpreted as a new particle, it is unusual in that it carries an electric charge and couples to charmonium. A fit to the π^\pm J/psi invariant mass spectrum, neglecting interference, results in a mass of (3899.0\pm 3.6\pm 4.9) MeV/c^2 and a width of (46\pm 10\pm 20) MeV. Its production ratio is measured to be R=\frac{σ(e+e- to π^\pm Z_c(3900)^\mp to pi+pi-J/psi))} {σ(e+e- to pi+pi-J/psi)}=(21.5\pm 3.3\pm 7.5)%. In all measurements the first errors are statistical and the second are systematic.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Search for the Lepton Flavor Violation Process $J/ψ\to eμ$ at BESIII

We search for the lepton-flavor-violating decay of the $J/ψ$ into an electron and a muon using $(225.3\pm2.8)\times 10^{6}$ $J/ψ$ events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider. Four candidate events are found in the signal region, consistent with background expectations. An upper limit on the branching fraction of $\mathcal{B}(J/ψ\to eμ)< 1.5 \times 10^{-7}$ (90% C.L.) is obtained.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Partial wave analysis of $ψ(2S) \to p \bar{p}η$

Using a sample of $1.06 \times 10^{8}$ $ψ(2S)$ events collected with the BESIII detector at BEPCII, the decay $ψ(2S) \to p \bar{p}η$ is studied. A partial wave analysis determines that the intermediate state N(1535) with a mass of $1524\pm5^{+10}_{-4}$ MeV/$c^2$ and a width of $130^{+27+57}_{-24-10}$ MeV/$c^2$ is dominant in the decay; the product branching fraction is determined to be $B(ψ(2S) \to N(1535)\bar{p})\times B(N(1535)\to pη)+c.c. = (5.2\pm0.3^{+3.2}_{-1.2})\times 10^{-5}$. Furthermore, the branching fraction of $ψ(2S) \to ηp \bar{p}$ is measured to be $(6.4\pm0.2\pm0.6)\times 10^{-5}$.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Measurement of $η^\prime\rightarrow π^+π^- e^+e^-$ and $η^\prime\rightarrow π^+π^-μ^+μ^-$

Based on a sample of 225.3 million J/ψevents accumulated with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII, the decays of η' to pi+pi-l+l- are studied via J/ψto γη'. A clear η' signal is observed in the pi+pi-e+e- mass spectrum, and the branching fraction is measured to be \BR(η' to pi+pi-e+e-) = (2.11\pm0.12 (stat.)\pm0.15 (syst.))\times10^{-3}, which is in good agreement with theoretical predictions and the previous measurement, but is determined with much higher precision. No η' signal is found in the pi+ pi- mu+ mu- mass spectrum, and the upper limit is determined to be \BR(η' to pi+ pi- mu+ mu-)<2.9\times10^{-5} at the 90% confidence level.

hep-ex↗