Exclusive production of $\rho^0$ mesons was studied at the COMPASS experiment by scattering 160 GeV/$c$ muons off transversely polarised protons. Five single-spin and three double-spin azimuthal asymmetries were measured as a function of $Q^2$, $x_{Bj}$, or $p_{T}^{2}$. The $\sin \phi_S$ asymmetry is found to be $-0.019 \pm 0.008(stat.) \pm 0.003(syst.)$. All other asymmetries are also found to be of small magnitude and consistent with zero within experimental uncertainties. Very recent calculations using a GPD-based model agree well with the present results. The data is interpreted as evidence for the existence of chiral-odd, transverse generalized parton distributions.
Single-spin azimuthal asymmetries for a transversely (T) polarised target and unpolarised (U) beam.
Single-spin azimuthal asymmetries for a transversely (T) polarised target and unpolarised (U) beam.
Single-spin azimuthal asymmetries for a transversely (T) polarised target and unpolarised (U) beam.
The COMPASS Collaboration at CERN has measured the transverse spin azimuthal asymmetry of charged hadrons produced in semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering using a 160 GeV positive muon beam and a transversely polarised NH_3 target. The Sivers asymmetry of the proton has been extracted in the Bjorken x range 0.003<x<0.7. The new measurements have small statistical and systematic uncertainties of a few percent and confirm with considerably better accuracy the previous COMPASS measurement. The Sivers asymmetry is found to be compatible with zero for negative hadrons and positive for positive hadrons, a clear indication of a spin-orbit coupling of quarks in a transversely polarised proton. As compared to measurements at lower energy, a smaller Sivers asymmetry for positive hadrons is found in the region x > 0.03. The asymmetry is different from zero and positive also in the low x region, where sea-quarks dominate. The kinematic dependence of the asymmetry has also been investigated and results are given for various intervals of hadron and virtual photon fractional energy. In contrast to the case of the Collins asymmetry, the results on the Sivers asymmetry suggest a strong dependence on the four-momentum transfer to the nucleon, in agreement with the most recent calculations.
The Sivers asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for positive hadrons as a function of X for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Collins data measurments.
The Sivers asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for negative hadrons as a function of X for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Collins data measurments.
The Sivers asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for positive hadrons as a function of PT for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Collins data measurments.
The COMPASS Collaboration at CERN has measured the transverse spin azimuthal asymmetry of charged hadrons produced in semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering using a 160 GeV positive muon beam and a transversely polarised NH_3 target. The Collins asymmetry of the proton was extracted in the Bjorken x range 0.003<x<0.7. These new measurements confirm with higher accuracy previous measurements from the COMPASS and HERMES collaborations, which exhibit a definite effect in the valence quark region. The asymmetries for negative and positive hadrons are similar in magnitude and opposite in sign. They are compatible with model calculations in which the u-quark transversity is opposite in sign and somewhat larger than the d-quark transversity distribution function. The asymmetry is extracted as a function of Bjorken $x$, the relative hadron energy $z$ and the hadron transverse momentum p_T^h. The high statistics and quality of the data also allow for more detailed investigations of the dependence on the kinematic variables. These studies confirm the leading-twist nature of the Collins asymmetry.
The Collins asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for positive hadrons as a function of X for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Sivers data measurments.
The Collins asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for negative hadrons as a function of X for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Sivers data measurments.
The Collins asymmetry, from the 2010 data set, for positive hadrons as a function of PT for full range. Also shown are the mean values of other variables plus the correlation with the Sivers data measurments.
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