Professor Brian Foster OBE, FRS

Abstract:

The large amount of data accumulated by the TASSO detector at 35 GeV c.m. energy has been compared with the predictions of the latest generation of perturbative QCD+fragmentation models. By adjustment of the arbitrary parameters of these models, a very good description of the global properties of hadronic events was obtained. No one model gave the best description of all features of the data, each model being better than the others for some observables and worse in other quantities. We interpret these results in terms of the underlying QCD and hadronisation schemes. The trends of the data across the energy range 12.0≦W≦41.5 GeV are generally well reproduced by the models with the parameters optimised at 35 GeV. © 1988 Springer-Verlag.

Abstract:

Rectangular drift chamber cells have been constructed and tested using an electron test beam facility at DESY. A systematic study of the time, spatial, energy and double track resolutions with a 100 MHz FADC readout is presented. The spatial resolution is 100 to 120 μm and the double track resolution is 2.5 mm with an Ar:C2H6 (50:50) gas mixture at atmospheric pressure. The dE dx resolution obtained corresponds to 6% resolution for a 72-layer chamber. © 1988.

Abstract:

The reaction e+e-→μ+μ- has been studied at centre of mass energies between 35.0 and 46.8 GeV using the TASSO detector at PETRA. We present measurements of the forward-backward charge asymmetry (Aμμ) and cross section σμμ for this reaction at three energies. At 35.0 GeV we obtain a cross section relative to the QED prediction of Rμμ=σμμ/σo=0.932±0.018±0.044 and Aμμ=(-10.6-2.3+2.2±0.5)%. At 38.3 GeV we find Rμμ=0.951±0.072-0.057+0.063 and Aμμ=(+1.7-8.6+8.5±0.5)%. At 43.6 GeV we measure Rμμ=0.921±0.037±0.055 and Aμμ=(-17.6-4.3+4.4±0.5)%. Our results are in good agreement with the predictions of the standard model. Including previous TASSO data we present improved determinations of muonic electroweak parameters. We also report on lower limits of possible contributions from contact interactions. © 1988 Springer-Verlag.

Abstract:

We have reconstructed 695 three-track τ decay vertices using a high resolution drift chamber close to the interaction point. From the distribution of decay lengths we measure the lifetime to be (3.06 ±0.20±0.14)×10−13 s. Using this result we find that the ratio of charged weak coupling constant for the τ to that of the μ, Gτ/Gμ=0.967±0.040 consistent with the concept of lepton universality. © 1988, Springer-Verlag. All rights reserved.

Abstract:

By seeking to identify magnetically charged particles by their trajectories in a magnetic field, we set limits on the production of monopoles and dyons, via the process e+e-→γ*→M {Mathematical expression}, of masses up to 17 GeV and of magnetic charges between 10 e and 70 e © 1988 Springer-Verlag.