arXiv subjects

N. Wuerfel

Publications and source records attributed to N. Wuerfel.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Electro- and photoproduction of muon pairs with $μ$CLAS12: Double Deeply Virtual Compton Scattering, Timelike Compton Scattering, and $J/ψ$ production

The CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer for operation at 12 GeV (CLAS12) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility has played a central role in advancing the understanding of nucleon and nuclear structure. As increasingly precise data become available, new physics opportunities emerge that extend beyond the current capabilities of CLAS12. In this article, a program to explore the quark and gluon structure of the nucleon through di-muon electro- and photoproduction is presented. Its primary focus is the measurement of beam-spin asymmetries in Double Deeply Virtual Compton Scattering, $ep \rightarrow e^\prime μ^+ μ^-p^\prime $. By independently varying the incoming and outgoing photon virtualities and momentum transfer, the DDVCS measurement provides access to the Generalized Parton Distributions over their full three-dimensional phase space, extending beyond the kinematic constraints of Deeply Virtual Compton Scattering and Timelike Compton Scattering. In addition, the large acceptance and high luminosity of the $μ$CLAS12 experiment will enable precision measurements of near-threshold $J/ψ$ production and high-statistics studies of Timelike Compton Scattering.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2026

The MUSE Target Chamber Post Veto

The Muon Scattering Experiment (MUSE) was developed to address the proton radius puzzle through simultaneous electron-proton and muon-proton scattering using the Paul Scherrer Institute's PiM1 secondary beamline. MUSE uses a large-solid-angle, non-magnetic spectrometer to detect beam particles scattering from a liquid hydrogen cell contained within a vacuum chamber. Due to the large scattering windows, the structural integrity of the chamber is supported by posts located at small scattering angles. While out of the acceptance, particles in the tails of the beam distribution can strike these posts, causing a significant trigger background. We describe the design and performance of the Target Chamber Post Veto (TCPV) detector installed inside the vacuum chamber to remove these background events at the trigger level.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2026

Measurements of Angular Distributions of Drell-Yan Dimuons in $p+p$ and $p+d$ Interactions at 120 GeV/$c$

We present experimental results on the angular distributions of Drell-Yan muons produced by a 120 GeV/$c$ proton beam interacting with liquid hydrogen and deuterium targets. The dimuon angular distributions in both polar ($θ$) and azimuthal ($ϕ$) angles in the Collins-Soper frame are measured within the kinematic range of $4.5 < m_{μμ} < 10\ \mathrm{GeV}/c^2$, $0.19 < p_T < 2.24\ \mathrm{GeV}/c$, and $0 < x_F < 0.95$. Unlike the results of a previous proton-induced Drell-Yan experiment at a higher energy, the data reveal a pronounced $\cos 2ϕ$ modulation in the angular distributions. Comparison with perturbative QCD (pQCD) predictions shows statistically significant deviations, with p-values of 3.5\% for the $p+p$ and 1.5\% for the $p+d$ Drell-Yan processes. These results suggest the presence of nonperturbative QCD contributions.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2026

Final SeaQuest results on the flavor asymmetry of the proton light-quark sea with proton-induced Drell-Yan process

The Fermilab E906/SeaQuest collaboration performed measurements of the Drell-Yan process using 120 GeV proton beams bombarding liquid hydrogen and liquid deuterium targets. A combined analysis of all collected data was performed to obtain the final results for the $σ_{pd}/2σ_{pp}$ Drell-Yan cross section ratio covering the kinematic region of $0.13 < x < 0.45$. The $x$-dependencies of $\bar{d}\left(x\right) / \bar{u}\left(x\right)$ and $\bar{d}\left(x\right) - \bar{u}\left(x\right)$ are extracted from these cross section ratios. It is found that $\bar{d}\left(x\right)$ is greater than $\bar{u}\left(x\right)$ over the entire measured $x$ range, with improved statistical accuracy compared to previous measurements. The new results on $\bar{d}\left(x\right) / \bar{u}\left(x\right)$ and $\bar{d}\left(x\right) - \bar{u}\left(x\right)$ are compared to various parton distribution functions and theoretical calculations.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2025

Intelligent experiments through real-time AI: Fast Data Processing and Autonomous Detector Control for sPHENIX and future EIC detectors

This R\&D project, initiated by the DOE Nuclear Physics AI-Machine Learning initiative in 2022, leverages AI to address data processing challenges in high-energy nuclear experiments (RHIC, LHC, and future EIC). Our focus is on developing a demonstrator for real-time processing of high-rate data streams from sPHENIX experiment tracking detectors. The limitations of a 15 kHz maximum trigger rate imposed by the calorimeters can be negated by intelligent use of streaming technology in the tracking system. The approach efficiently identifies low momentum rare heavy flavor events in high-rate p+p collisions (3MHz), using Graph Neural Network (GNN) and High Level Synthesis for Machine Learning (hls4ml). Success at sPHENIX promises immediate benefits, minimizing resources and accelerating the heavy-flavor measurements. The approach is transferable to other fields. For the EIC, we develop a DIS-electron tagger using Artificial Intelligence - Machine Learning (AI-ML) algorithms for real-time identification, showcasing the transformative potential of AI and FPGA technologies in high-energy nuclear and particle experiments real-time data processing pipelines.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2024

Measurement of $J/ψ$ and $ψ\left(2S\right)$ production in $p+p$ and $p+d$ interactions at 120 GeV

We report the $p+p$ and $p+d$ differential cross sections measured in the SeaQuest experiment for $J/ψ$ and $ψ\left(2S\right)$ production at 120 GeV beam energy covering the forward $x$-Feynman ($x_F$) range of $0.5 < x_F <0.9$. The measured cross sections are in good agreement with theoretical calculations based on the nonrelativistic QCD (NRQCD) using the long-distance matrix elements deduced from a recent global analysis of proton- and pion-induced charmonium production data. The $σ_{ψ\left(2S\right)} / σ_{J/ψ}$ cross section ratios are found to increase as $x_F$ increases, indicating that the $q \bar{q}$ annihilation process has larger contributions in the $ψ\left(2S\right)$ production than the $J/ψ$ production. The $σ_{pd}/2σ_{pp}$ cross section ratios are observed to be significantly different for the Drell-Yan process and $J/ψ$ production, reflecting their different production mechanisms. We find that the $σ_{pd}/2σ_{pp}$ ratios for $J/ψ$ production at the forward $x_F$ region are sensitive to the $\bar{d}/ \bar{u}$ flavor asymmetry of the proton sea, analogous to the Drell-Yan process. The transverse momentum ($p_T$) distributions for $J/ψ$ and $ψ\left(2S\right)$ production are also presented and compared with data collected at higher center-of-mass energies.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2024

The MUSE Beamline Calorimeter

The MUon Scattering Experiment (MUSE) was motivated by the proton radius puzzle arising from the discrepancy between muonic hydrogen spectroscopy and electron-proton measurements. The MUSE physics goals also include testing lepton universality, precisely measuring two-photon exchange contribution, and testing radiative corrections. MUSE addresses these physics goals through simultaneous measurement of high precision cross sections for electron-proton and muon-proton scattering using a mixed-species beam. The experiment will run at both positive and negative beam polarities. Measuring precise cross sections requires understanding both the incident beam energy and the radiative corrections. For this purpose, a lead-glass calorimeter was installed at the end of the beam line in the MUSE detector system. In this article we discuss the detector specifications, calibration and performance. We demonstrate that the detector performance is well reproduced by simulation, and meets experimental requirements.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2023

A demonstrator for a real-time AI-FPGA-based triggering system for sPHENIX at RHIC

The RHIC interaction rate at sPHENIX will reach around 3 MHz in pp collisions and requires the detector readout to reject events by a factor of over 200 to fit the DAQ bandwidth of 15 kHz. Some critical measurements, such as heavy flavor production in pp collisions, often require the analysis of particles produced at low momentum. This prohibits adopting the traditional approach, where data rates are reduced through triggering on rare high momentum probes. We explore a new approach based on real-time AI technology, adopt an FPGA-based implementation using a custom designed FELIX-712 board with the Xilinx Kintex Ultrascale FPGA, and deploy the system in the detector readout electronics loop for real-time trigger decision.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2021

Characterization of Muon and Electron Beams in the Paul Scherrer Institute PiM1 Channel for the MUSE Experiment

The MUon Scattering Experiment, MUSE, at the Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland, investigates the proton charge radius puzzle, lepton universality, and two-photon exchange, via simultaneous measurements of elastic muon-proton and electron-proton scattering. The experiment uses the PiM1 secondary beam channel, which was designed for high precision pion scattering measurements. We review the properties of the beam line established for pions. We discuss the production processes that generate the electron and muon beams, and the simulations of these processes. Simulations of the $π$/$μ$/$e$ beams through the channel using TURTLE and G4beamline are compared. The G4beamline simulation is then compared to several experimental measurements of the channel, including the momentum dispersion at the IFP and target, the shape of the beam spot at the target, and timing measurements that allow the beam momenta to be determined. We conclude that the PiM1 channel can be used for high precision $π$, $μ$, and $e$ scattering.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2019

A Liquid Hydrogen Target for the MUSE Experiment at PSI

A 280 ml liquid hydrogen target has been constructed and tested for the MUSE experiment at PSI to investigate the proton charge radius via simultaneous measurement of elastic muon-proton and elastic electron-proton scattering. To control systematic uncertainties at a sub-percent level, strong constraints were put on the amount of material surrounding the target and on its temperature stability. The target cell wall is made of $120\,μ$m-thick Kapton, while the beam entrance and exit windows are made of $125\,μ$m-thick aluminized Kapton. The side exit windows are made of Mylar laminated on aramid fabric with an areal density of $368\,$g/m$^2$. The target system was successfully operated during a commissioning run at PSI at the end of 2018. The target temperature was stable at the 0.01 K level. This suggests a density stability at the $0.02\,$% level, which is about a factor of ten better than required.

physics.ins-det↗