Production of hydrogen isotopes and charged pions in p (3.5 GeV) + Nb reactions

TL;DR

This study measures hydrogen isotopes and charged pions produced in 3.5 GeV proton reactions with niobium, providing new data to understand nuclear cascade development and particle production mechanisms.

Contribution

It extends the energy range of hydrogen isotope measurements in proton-nucleus reactions and compares results with models of nuclear spallation and hadronic processes.

Findings

Extended energy range of hydrogen isotope data.

Data consistent with intranuclear cascade models.

Insights into particle production mechanisms in nuclear matter.

Abstract

The double differential production cross sections, $d^2\sigma/d\Omega dE$, for hydrogen isotopes and charged pions in the reaction of p + Nb at 3.5 GeV proton beam energy have been measured by the High Acceptance DiElectron Spectrometer (HADES). Thanks to the high acceptance of HADES at forward emission angles and usage of its magnetic field, the measured energy range of hydrogen isotopes could be significantly extended in comparison to the relatively scarce experimental data available in the literature. The data provide information about the development of the intranuclear cascade in the proton-nucleus collisions. They can as well be utilized to study the rate of energy/momentum dissipation in the nuclear systems and the mechanism of elementary and composite particle production in excited nuclear matter at normal density. Data of this type are important also for technological and medical applications. Our results are compared to models developed to describe the processes relevant to nuclear spallation (INCL++) or oriented to probe either the elementary hadronic processes in nuclear matter or the behavior of compressed nuclear matter (GiBUU).