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L. Fabbietti

Publications and source records attributed to L. Fabbietti.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Measurement of Differential Cross Sections and Integrated Luminosity using Proton-Proton Elastic Scattering with HADES at T = 4.53 GeV and T = 1.60 GeV

This work presents an investigation of elastic proton-proton scattering based on data collected with the recently upgraded HADES detector using beams of protons with kinetic energies of $T = 4.53$ GeV and $T = 1.60$ GeV impinging on a liquid hydrogen target. This is the first measurement emerging from the upgraded detector setup, including a Forward Detector with straw-tube tracking planes designed for the PANDA experiment. The well-constrained two-body kinematic relations of elastic scattering have been exploited to study the detector alignment, the beam alignment, and to provide the final measurement of the beam energy. In addition, the recorded luminosity of the experiment has been determined by normalizing the HADES data in a range of the squared four-momentum transfer $t$ that overlaps with measurements by previous experiments worldwide. Furthermore, the differential cross sections have been determined over a large range of $t$ from which the slope parameter $B$ is extracted, yielding $B = 8.98 \pm 0.3$ (GeV/$c$)$^{-2}$ and $7.3 \pm 0.1$ (GeV/$c$)$^{-2}$ at $T = 4.53$ GeV and $1.60$ GeV, respectively. This contribution to the world database on elastic proton-proton scattering provides input to theoretical modeling and serves as a reference for luminosity determinations by future experiments in the same energy range.

hep-ex

Light Antinuclei Coalescence: Femtoscopic Constraints via Neural-Flow Surrogates

Precise predictions of cosmic-ray antinuclei fluxes, a prime dark matter signature, are limited by the lack of data constraining production rates of antinuclei. We mitigate this bottleneck with a fast, differentiable normalizing-flow surrogate for the femtoscopic source model (CECA), fit to 49 ALICE proton-proton correlation functions, and extrapolated via scaling laws to the low-multiplicity domain relevant for cosmic rays. The surrogate reproduces CECA with sub-percent emulation fidelity, yielding data-constrained source functions that remove the dominant uncertainty in coalescence-based antinuclei production rates. The resulting uncertainties on the coalescence parameters $B_2$ and $B_3$ shrink from factors of 10-100 and ${\sim}$1000 to the few percent and ten-percent level, respectively, with an additional ${\sim}15\%$ wavefunction systematic for $B_{2}$.

astro-ph.HE

Large-scale real-time signal processing in physics experiments: The ALICE TPC FPGA pipeline

For LHC Run 3, the ALICE Time Projection Chamber was upgraded to operate in continuous readout mode. Interaction rates of up to 50 kHz in Pb-Pb collisions require real-time processing of more than 3 TB/s of raw detector data. This requirement is met by a custom FPGA-based processing pipeline that performs the complete front-end data treatment fully in-stream, including common-mode correction, pedestal subtraction, ion-tail filtering, zero suppression, and dense data packing. A central element of the design is a highly parallel common-mode correction algorithm operating directly on the streaming data. It robustly identifies signal-free readout channels on a time-bin basis and applies pad-dependent scaling to compensate for local variations in capacitive coupling in the GEM readout. In combination with pedestal subtraction and ion-tail filtering, this enables accurate baseline restoration under extreme high-occupancy conditions, preventing signal loss while efficiently suppressing noise prior to zero suppression. The pipeline operates continuously at the full detector bandwidth and reduces the raw input rate to about 900 GB/s for Pb-Pb collisions at the target interaction rate. Overall, it represents a large-scale FPGA-based real-time signal-processing implementation for high-energy physics detector readout.

physics.ins-det

Formation and lifetime measurements of light hypernuclei in Ag+Ag collisions at $\mathrm{\sqrt{s_{NN}}}$ = 2.55 GeV

We present the first observation of $\mathrm{^{3}_\Lambda H}$ and $\mathrm{^{4}_\Lambda H}$ in Ag+Ag collisions at $\mathrm{\sqrt{s_{NN}}}$ = 2.55 GeV, emitted around mid-rapidity. The hypernuclei are reconstructed via their two-body decay channels and identified through their weak-decay topology, employing an artificial neural network for enhanced discrimination. The analysis methodology is validated using $\Lambda$ hyperons. The resulting rapidity distributions, dN/dy, exhibit a bell shape centered at mid-rapidity. The yield of $\mathrm{^{4}_\Lambda H}$ is equal to or exceeds that of $\mathrm{^{3}_\Lambda H}$, which contrasts the measurement from the STAR collaboration at $\mathrm{\sqrt{s_{NN}}}$ = 3 GeV and is consistent with a scenario in which hypernuclei receive feed-down from excited states. The data enable a high-precision measurement of the hypernuclei lifetimes. For the $\mathrm{^{3}_\Lambda H}$, a lifetime of $\mathrm{\tau_{^{3}_\Lambda H}}$ = $(239 \pm 23{\mathrm{(stat)}} \pm 18{\mathrm{(sys)}})\,\mathrm{ps}$, is extracted, consistent on the 1$\sigma$ level with that of the free $\Lambda$. In contrast, the $\mathrm{^{4}_\Lambda H}$ lifetime of $\mathrm{\tau_{^{4}_\Lambda H}}$ = $(209 \pm 7{\mathrm{(stat)}} \pm 10{\mathrm{(sys)}})\,\mathrm{ps}$, shows a 4.5 $\sigma$ deviation from the free $\Lambda$ lifetime. The results consolidate the available world data.

nucl-ex

Impact of trace amounts of water on the stability of Micro-Pattern Gaseous Detectors measured in Ar-CO$_2$ (90-10)

In this study, we investigate the influence of humidity on the performance of various non-resistive Micro Pattern Gaseous Detectors, such as GEM, Thick-GEM, and Micromegas, operated with \ArCOtwo gas mixture. The water content is introduced in a range of \SIrange[range-units=single]{0}{5000}{\ppmV}. It is observed that the presence of increased humidity does not significantly degrade any of the studied performance criteria. On the contrary, our measurements suggest an improvement in discharge stability with increasing humidity levels at the highest gains and fields. No significant difference is observed at the lower gains, indicating that humidity helps to reduce the rate of spurious discharges related to electrode defects or charging-up of the insulating layers. We conclude that adding a small amount of water to the gas mixture may be beneficial for the stable operation of an MPGD.

physics.ins-det

Precision Test of Bound-State QED at Intermediate-Z with Kaonic Neon

We report Dirac-Fock calculations of transition energies for kaonic neon (KNe). For the most intense line, the 7-6 transition, the calculated energy is 9450.28 eV, which includes a bound-state QED (BSQED) contribution of 12.66 eV. This is in excellent agreement with the recent SIDDHARTHA-2 measurement at DA$Φ$NE of 9450.23 $\pm$ 0.37 (stat.) $\pm$ 1.50 (syst.) eV. With the QED shift far exceeding experimental uncertainty, these results establish kaonic atoms as powerful platforms for precision tests of BSQED in intermediate-Z systems.

physics.atom-ph

Neutron Star Properties and Femtoscopic Constraints

We construct the equation of state of hypernuclear matter and study the structure of neutron stars employing a chiral hyperon-nucleon interaction of the Jülich--Bonn group tuned to femtoscopic $Λp$ data of the ALICE Collaboration, and $ΛΛ$ and $Ξ$N interactions determined from lattice QCD calculations by the HAL QCD Collaboration that reproduce the femtoscopic $ΛΛ$ and $Ξ^-p$ data. We employ the ab-initio microscopic Brueckner--Hartree--Fock theory extended to the strange baryon sector. A special focus is put on the uncertainties of the hyperon interactions and how they are effectively propagated to the composition, equation of state, mass-radius relation and tidal deformability of neutron stars. To such end, we consider the uncertainty due to the experimental error of the femtoscopic $Λp$ data used to fix the chiral hyperon-nucleon interaction and the theoretical uncertainty, estimated from the residual cut-off dependence of this interaction. We find that the final maximum mass of a neutron star with hyperons is in the range $1.3-1.4$ $M_\odot$, in agreement with previous works. The hyperon puzzle, therefore, remains still an open issue if only two-body hyperon-nucleon and hyperon-hyperon interactions are considered. Predictions for the tidal deformability of neutron stars with hyperons are found to be in agreement with the observational constraints from the gravitational wave event GW170817 in the mass range $1.1-1.3$ $M_\odot$.

nucl-th

The $p\Lambda$ and $pp\Lambda$ correlation functions

In this work we present the study of $p\Lambda$ and $pp\Lambda$ scattering processes using femtoscopic correlation functions. This observable has been recently used to access the low-energy interaction of hadrons emitted in the final state of high-energy collisions, delivering unprecedented precision information of the interaction among strange hadrons. The formalism for particle pairs is well established and it relates the measured correlation functions with the scattering wave function and the emission source. In the present work we analyze the $NN\Lambda$ scattering in free space and relate the corresponding wave function to the $pp\Lambda$ correlation measurement performed by the ALICE collaboration. The three-body problem is solved using the hyperspherical adiabatic basis. Regarding the $p\Lambda$ and $pp\Lambda$ interactions, different models are used and their impact on the correlation function is studied. The three body force considered in this work is anchored to describe the binding energy of the hypertriton and to give a good description of the two four-body hypernuclei. As a main result we have observed a huge, low-energy peak in the $pp\Lambda$ correlation function, mainly produced by the $J^\pi=1/2^+$ three-body state. The study of this peak from an experimental as well as a theoretical point of view will provide important constraints to the two- and three-body interactions.

nucl-th

Relevance of the coupled channels in the $ϕ$p and $ρ^0$p Correlation Functions

The vector meson-baryon interaction in a coupled channel scheme is revisited within the correlation function framework. As illustrative cases to reveal the important role played by the coupled channels, we focus on the $ϕ$p and $ρ^0$p systems given their complex dynamics and the presence of quasi-bound states or resonances in the vicinity of their thresholds. We show that the $ϕ$p femtoscopic data provide novel information about a $N^*$ state present in the experimental region and anticipate the relevance of a future $ρ^0$p correlation function measurement in order to pin down the $S=0, Q=+1$ vector meson-baryon interaction as well as to disclose the characterizing features of the $N^*(1700)$ state.

hep-ph

Proton, deuteron and triton flow measurements in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 2.4$ GeV

High precision measurements of flow coefficients $v_{n}$ ($n = 1 - 4$) for protons, deuterons and tritons relative to the first-order spectator plane have been performed in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 2.4$ GeV with the High-Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer (HADES) at the SIS18/GSI. Flow coefficients are studied as a function of transverse momentum $p_{t}$ and rapidity $y_{cm}$ over a large region of phase space and for several classes of collision centrality. A clear mass hierarchy is found for the slope of $v_{1}$, $d v_{1}/d y^{\prime}|_{y^{\prime} = 0}$ where $y^{\prime}$ is the scaled rapidity, and for $v_{2}$ at mid-rapidity. Scaling with the number of nucleons is observed for the $p_{t}$ dependence of $v_{2}$ and $v_{4}$ at mid-rapidity, which is indicative for nuclear coalescence as the main process responsible for light nuclei formation. $v_{2}$ is found to scale with the initial eccentricity $\langle ε_{2} \rangle$, while $v_{4}$ scales with $\langle ε_{2} \rangle^{2}$ and $\langle ε_{4} \rangle$. The multi-differential high-precision data on $v_{1}$, $v_{2}$, $v_{3}$, and $v_{4}$ provides important constraints on the equation-of-state of compressed baryonic matter.

nucl-ex

Kaonic lead feasibility measurement at DAΦNE to solve the charged kaon mass discrepancy

An HPGe detector equipped with a transistor reset preamplifier and readout with a CAEN DT5781 fast pulse digitizer was employed in the measurement of X-rays from kaonic lead at the DA$Φ$NE $e^+e^-$ collider at the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati of INFN. A thin scintillator in front of a lead target was used to select kaons impinging on it and to form the trigger for the HPGe detector. We present the results of the kaonic lead feasibility measurement, where we show that the resolution of the HPGe detector in regular beam conditions remains the same as that without the beam and that a satisfactory background reduction can be achieved. This measurement serves as a test bed for future dedicated kaonic X-rays measurements for the more precise determination of the charged kaon mass.

physics.ins-det

SIDDHARTA-2 apparatus for kaonic atoms research on the DA$Φ$NE collider

SIDDHARTA-2 represents a state-of-the-art experiment designed to perform dedicated measurements of kaonic atoms, which are particular exotic atom configurations composed of a negatively charged kaon and a nucleus. Investigating these atoms provides an exceptional tool to comprehend the strong interactions in the non-perturbative regime involving strangeness. The experiment is installed at the DA$Φ$NE electron-positron collider, of the INFN National Laboratory of Frascati (INFN-LNF) in Italy, aiming to perform the first-ever measurement of the 2p$\rightarrow$1s X-ray transitions in kaonic deuterium, a crucial step towards determining the isospin-dependent antikaon-nucleon scattering lengths. Based on the experience gained with the previous SIDDHARTA experiment, which performed the most precise measurement of the kaonic hydrogen 2p$\rightarrow$1s X-ray transitions, the present apparatus has been upgraded with innovative Silicon Drift Detectors (SDDs), distributed around a cryogenic gaseous target placed in a vacuum chamber at a short distance above the interaction region of the collider. We present a comprehensive description of the SIDDHARTA-2 setup including the optimization of its various components during the commissioning phase of the collider.

physics.ins-det

CdZnTe detectors tested at the DAΦNE collider for future kaonic atoms measurements

The SIDDHARTA-2 collaboration at the INFN Laboratories of Frascati (LNF) aims to perform groundbreaking measurements on kaonic atoms. In parallel and beyond the ongoing kaonic deuterium, presently running on the DA$Φ$NE collider at LNF, we plan to install additional detectors to perform further kaonic atoms' studies, taking advantage of the unique low energy and low momentum spread $K^-$ beam delivered by the at-rest decay of the $ϕ$ meson. CdZnTe devices are ideal for detecting transitions toward both the upper and lower levels of intermediate-mass kaonic atoms, like kaonic carbon and aluminium, which have an important impact on the strangeness sector of nuclear physics. We present the results obtained in a set of preliminary tests conducted on DA$Φ$NE, in view of measurements foreseen in 2024, with the twofold aim to tune the timing window required to reject the extremely high electromagnetic background, and to quantify the readout electronics saturation effect due to the high rate, when placed close to the Interaction Region (IR). In the first test we used commercial devices and electronics, while for the second one both were customized at the IMEM-CNR of Parma and the University of Palermo. The results confirmed the possibility of finding and matching a proper timing window where to identify the signal events and proved better performances, in terms of energy resolution, of the custom system. In both cases, strong saturation effects were confirmed, accounting for a loss of almost 90\% of the events, which will be overcome by a dedicated shielding structure foreseen for the final experimental setup.

physics.ins-det

Inclusive e$^+$e$^-$ production in collisions of pions with protons and nuclei in the second resonance region of baryons

Inclusive e$^+$e$^-$ production has been studied with HADES in $π^-$ + p, $π^-$ + C and $π^- + \mathrm{CH}_2$ reactions, using the GSI pion beam at $\sqrt{s_{πp}}$ = 1.49 GeV. Invariant mass and transverse momentum distributions have been measured and reveal contributions from Dalitz decays of $π^0$, $η$ mesons and baryon resonances. The transverse momentum distributions are very sensitive to the underlying kinematics of the various processes. The baryon contribution exhibits a deviation up to a factor seven from the QED reference expected for the dielectron decay of a hypothetical point-like baryon with the production cross section constrained from the inverse $γ$ n$\rightarrow π^-$ p reaction. The enhancement is attributed to a strong four-momentum squared dependence of the time-like electromagnetic transition form factors as suggested by Vector Meson Dominance (VMD). Two versions of the VMD, that differ in the photon-baryon coupling, have been applied in simulations and compared to data. VMD1 (or two-component VMD) assumes a coupling via the $ρ$ meson and a direct coupling of the photon, while in VMD2 (or strict VMD) the coupling is only mediated via the $ρ$ meson. The VMD2 model, frequently used in transport calculations for dilepton decays, is found to overestimate the measured dielectron yields, while a good description of the data can be obtained with the VMD1 model assuming no phase difference between the two amplitudes. Similar descriptions have also been obtained using a time-like baryon transition form factor model where the pion cloud plays the major role.

nucl-ex

Impact of the gas choice and the geometry on the breakdown limits in Micromegas detectors

In this study we investigate the stability limits of Micromegas detectors upon irradiation with alpha particles. The results are obtained with meshes with different optical transparency and geometry of wires. The measurements are performed in Ar- and Ne- based mixtures with different CO$_2$ content. We observe that the breakdown limit strongly depends on the gas and that a higher amount of quencher in the mixture does not necessarily correlate with higher stability. In addition, we observe discharge probability scaling with the wire pitch. This suggests that a Micromegas mesh cell can be treated as an independent amplification unit, similar to a hole in a GEM foil. The outcome of these studies provides valuable input for further optimization of MPGD detectors, multi-layer stacks in particular.

physics.ins-det

Measurements of high-n transitions in intermediate mass kaonic atoms by SIDDHARTA-2 at DA$\mathrmΦ$NE

The SIDDHARTA-2 experiment installed at the DA$\mathrmΦ$NE collider of INFN-LNF performed, for the first time, measurements of high-n transitions in intermediate mass kaonic atoms during the data taking campaigns of 2021 and 2022. Kaonic carbon, oxygen, nitrogen and aluminium transitions, which occur in the setup materials, were measured by using the kaons stopped in the gaseous helium target cell with aluminium frames and Kapton walls, and are reported in this paper. These new kaonic atoms measurements add valuable input to the kaonic atoms transitions data base, which is used as a reference for theories and models of the low-energy strong interaction between antikaon and nuclei. Moreover, these results pave the way for future dedicated kaonic atoms measurements through the whole periodic table and to a new era for the antikaon-nuclei studies at low energy.

nucl-ex

Hadron Production and Propagation in Pion-Induced Reactions on Nuclei

Hadron production ($π^\pm$, proton, $Λ$, $K_S^0$, $K^\pm$) in $π^- + \mathrm{C}$ and $π^- + \mathrm{W}$ collisions is investigated at an incident pion beam momentum of $1.7~\mathrm{GeV}/c$. This comprehensive set of data measured with HADES at SIS18/GSI significantly extends the existing world data on hadron production in pion induced reactions and provides a new reference for models that are commonly used for the interpretation of heavy-ion collisions. The measured inclusive differential production cross-sections are compared with state-of-the-art transport model (GiBUU, SMASH) calculations. The (semi-) exclusive channel $π^- + A \rightarrow Λ+ K_S^0 +X$, in which the kinematics of the strange hadrons are correlated, is also investigated and compared to a model calculation. Agreement and remaining tensions between data and the current version of the considered transport models are discussed.

nucl-ex

New opportunities for kaonic atoms measurements from CdZnTe detectors

We present the tests performed by the SIDDHARTA-2 collaboration at the DAΦNE collider with a quasi-hemispherical CdZnTe detector. The very good room-temperature energy resolution and efficiency in a wide energy range show that this detector technology is ideal for studying radiative transitions in intermediate and heavy-mass kaonic atoms. The CdZnTe detector was installed for the first time in an accelerator environment to perform tests on the background rejection capabilities, which were achieved by exploiting the SIDDHARTA-2 Luminosity Monitor. A spectrum with an $^{241}Am$ source has been acquired, with beams circulating in the main rings, and peak resolutions of 6% at 60 keV and of 2.2% at 511 keV have been achieved. The background suppression factor, which turned out to be of the order of $\simeq10^{5-6}$, opens the possibility to plan for future kaonic atom measurements with CdZnTe detectors.

physics.ins-det