Evidence for a narrow S = +1 baryon resonance in photoproduction from the neutron

An updated review of the new hadron states

The past decades witnessed the golden era of hadron physics. Many excited open heavy flavor mesons and baryons have been observed since 2017. We shall provide an updated review of the recent experimental and theoretical progresses in this active field. Besides the conventional heavy hadrons, we shall also review the recently observed open heavy flavor tetraquark statesX(2900) andTcc+(3875)as well as the hidden heavy flavor multiquark statesX(6900),Pcs(4459)0,Zcs(3985)-,Zcs(4000)+, andZcs(4220)+. We will also cover the recent progresses on the glueballs and light hybrid mesons, which are the direct manifestations of the non-AbelianSU(3) gauge interaction of the Quantum Chromodynamics in the low-energy region.

Earth-abundant and environmentally benign Ni-Zn iron oxide intercalated in a polyaniline based nanohybrid as an ultrafast photodetector

Nickel-zinc iron oxide (NZF) was introduced into a polyaniline (PANI) matrix by an in situ chemical oxidation polymerization approach. The surface composition and chemical states were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which revealed an Fe 2p spectrum with the two peak positions of Fe 2p_3/2 and Fe 2p_1/2 at 711.00 and 724.48 eV, respectively. Deconvolution of the Fe 2p_3/2 peak revealed two components with binding energies of 713.98 and 718.16 eV, corresponding to the presence of Fe cations in the octahedral and tetrahedral sites. Additionally, the Rietveld refinement of NZF showed a cubic system with the Fd₃m space group. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) analysis showed that the NZF material strongly interacts with polyaniline, while the selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern perfectly matched with the XRD data. Lognormal distribution was used to determine the particle size, which was found to be in the range of 1-100 nm. A flexible photodetector device utilizing the NZF-PANI nanohybrid was fabricated on an environmentally friendly, biodegradable cellulose paper substrate and the device exhibited excellent performance, i.e., a responsivity of 0.069 A W^-1 and detectivity of 7.258 × 10¹⁰ Jones at a very low voltage of 0.1 V. The non-stretched device showed a responsivity of 24.980 A W^-1 at 5 V, whereas at 2 cm^-1 bending curvature, the device showed a responsivity of 20.175 A W^-1, which was much higher than the responsivity of a commercial photodetector (<0.5 A W^-1).

The Nakano–Nishijima–Gell-Mann Formula from Discrete Galois Fields

The well known Nakano–Nishijima–Gell-Mann (NNG) formula relates certain quantum numbers of elementary particles to their charge number. This equation, which phenomenologically introduces the quantum numbers Iz (isospin), S (strangeness), etc., is constructed using group theory with real numbers R. But, using a discrete Galois field Fp instead of R and assuring the fundamental invariance laws such as unitarity, Lorentz invariance, and gauge invariance, we derive the NNG formula deductively from Meson (two quarks) and Baryon (three quarks) representations in a unified way. Moreover, we show that quark confinement ascribes to the inevitable fractionality caused by coprimeness between half-integer (1/2) of isospin and number of composite particles (e.g., three).

Search for theN(1685) inηπ-Photoproduction

The nucleon-like memberN(1685) of the speculative baryon antidecuplet denotes one possible explanation for the narrow peak-structure aroundW= 1.68 GeV observed in the total cross section ofη- photoproduction off the neutron. If this baryon existed, it would likely to be seen in other reactions as well. While the aforementioned peak, whatever its nature is, was confirmed by several experiments, claims for signa tures of theN(1685) in other reactions and observables are mainly made by V. Kuznetsov etal.using GRAAL data. Their latest work suggests signals of bothN(1685) charge states in all isospin channels ofηπ- photopro duction off the proton and neutron. This contribution reports on challenging these claims with data from the A2 at MAMI experiment employing photon beam energies from Ey=1.43-1.58 GeV. Theηπ0pandηπ+nfinal states produced from a hydrogen target were studied and new analysis cuts were tested in order to enhance a possible signal.

Recent results from LEPS and status of LEPS2

Two high-energy photon beamlines, LEPS and LEPS2, have been operated at SPring-8. In both beamlines, linearly polarized photon beams up to 2.9 GeV produced by laser-induced backward Compton scattering from 8 GeV electrons have been used to study quark-nuclear physics via the photo-production of hadrons. In this article, I present some recent results from LEPS including the coherent ø photoproduction from 4He and γp → π− Δ++ reaction, and report on the current status of the developments of the LEPS2 solenoid spectrometer.

Identifying Exotic Hidden-Charm Pentaquarks

The LHCb Collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN discovered two pentaquark states P_{c}(4380) and P_{c}(4450). These two hidden-charm states are interpreted as the loosely bound Σ_{c}(2455)D^{*} and Σ_{c}^{*}(2520)D^{*} molecular states in the boson exchange interaction model, which provides an explanation for why the experimental width of P_{c}(4450) is much narrower than that of P_{c}(4380). The discovery of the new resonances P_{c}(4380) and P_{c}(4450), indeed, opens a new page for hadron physics. The partners of P_{c}(4380) and P_{c}(4450) should be pursued in future experiments.

Search for the Θ+ pentaquark via the π(-)p→K(-)X reaction at 1.92 GeV/c

The Θ(+) pentaquark baryon was searched for via the π(-)p→K(-)X reaction with a missing mass resolution of 1.4 MeV/c(2) (FWHM) at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC). π(-) meson beams were incident on the liquid hydrogen target with a beam momentum of 1.92 GeV/c. No peak structure corresponding to the Θ(+) mass was observed. The upper limit of the production cross section averaged over the scattering angle of 2° to 15° in the laboratory frame is obtained to be 0.26 μb/sr in the mass region of 1.51-1.55 GeV/c(2). The upper limit of the Θ(+) decay width is obtained to be 0.72 and 3.1 MeV for J(Θ)(P)=1/2(+) and J(Θ)(P)=1/2(-), respectively, using the effective Lagrangian approach.

Novel interpretation of the "θ+ (1540) pentaquark" peak

We use a theoretical model of the γd→K+ K- np reaction adapted to the experiment done at LEPS where a peak was observed and associated with the Θ+ (1540) pentaquark. The study shows that the method used in the experiment to assign momenta to the undetected proton and neutron, together with the chosen cuts, necessarily creates an artificial broad peak in the assumed K+ n invariant mass in the region of the claimed Θ+ (1540), such that the remaining strength seen for the experimental peak is compatible with a fluctuation of 2σ significance.

Near-threshold photoproduction of Lambda(1520) from protons and deuterons

Photoproduction of Lambda(1520) with liquid hydrogen and deuterium targets was examined at photon energies below 2.4 GeV in the SPring-8 LEPS experiment. For the first time, the differential cross sections were measured at low energies and with a deuterium target. A large asymmetry of the production cross sections from protons and neutrons was observed at backward K+/0 angles. This suggests the importance of the contact term, which coexists with t-channel K exchange under gauge invariance. This interpretation was compatible with the differential cross sections, decay asymmetry, and photon beam asymmetry measured in the production from protons at forward K+ angles.

Sub-MeV tunably polarized X-ray production with laser Thomson backscattering

Reported in this article is the generation of unique polarized x-rays in the sub-MeV region by means of the Thomson backscattering of the Nd:YAG laser photon with a wavelength of 1064 nm on the 150 MeV electron from the microtron accelerator. The maximum energy of the x-ray photons is estimated to be about 400 keV. The total energy of the backscattered x-ray pulse is measured with an imaging plate and a LYSO scintillator. The angular divergence of the x-rays is also measured by using the imaging plate. We confirm that the x-ray beam is polarized according to the laser polarization direction with the Compton scattering method. In addition, we demonstrate the imaging of the object shielded by lead with the generated x-rays.

Spectral-fluctuations test of the quark-model baryon spectrum

We study the low-lying baryon spectrum (up to 2.2 GeV) provided by experiments and different quark models using statistical tools which allow us to postulate the existence of missing levels in spectra. We confirm that the experimental spectrum is compatible with random matrix theory, the paradigmatic model of quantum chaos, and we find that the quark models are more similar to a Poisson distribution, which is not compatible with what should be expected in a correlated spectrum. From our analysis it stems that the spectral fluctuation properties of quark-model spectra are incompatible with experimental data. This result can be used to enlighten the problem of missing resonances.

Evidence for diquarks in lattice QCD

Diquarks may play an important role in hadron spectroscopy, baryon decays, and color superconductivity. We investigate the existence of diquark correlations in lattice QCD by considering systematically all the lowest energy diquark channels in a color gauge-invariant setup. We measure mass differences between the various channels and show that the positive parity scalar diquark is the lightest. Quark-quark correlations inside the diquark are clearly seen in this channel, and yield a diquark size of O(1) fm.

Exotic hadrons in s-wave chiral dynamics

We study s-wave scattering of a hadron and a Nambu-Goldstone boson induced by the model-independent low energy interaction in the flavor SU(3) symmetric limit. Establishing the general structure of the interaction based on group theoretical arguments, we find that the interaction in the exotic channels are in most cases repulsive, and that for possible attractive channels the coupling strengths are weak and uniquely given independent of channel. Solving the scattering problem, we show that the attraction in the exotic channels is not strong enough to generate a bound state.

Observation of two new N* peaks in J/psi-->ppi-n and ppi+n decays

The decay J/psi-->NNpi provides an effective isospin 1/2 filter for the piN system due to isospin conservation. Using 58x10(6) J/psi decays collected with the Beijing Electromagnetic Spectrometer at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider, more than 100 thousand J/psi-->ppi-n+c.c. events are obtained. Besides the two well-known N* peaks at around 1500 MeV/c2 and 1670 MeV/c2, there are two new, clear N* peaks in the ppi invariant mass spectrum around 1360 MeV/c2 and 2030 MeV/c2 with statistical significance of 11sigma and 13sigma, respectively. We identify these as the first direct observation of the N*(1440) peak and a long-sought missing N* peak above 2 GeV/c2 in the piN invariant mass spectrum.

Search for the Theta+ Pentaquark in the gammad--> DeltanK+ reaction measured with the CLAS spectrometer

For the first time, the reaction gammad-->DeltanK+ has been analyzed in order to search for the exotic pentaquark baryon Theta+(1540). The data were taken at Jefferson Laboratory, using the Hall-B tagged-photon beam of energy between 0.8 and 3.6 GeV and the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS). No statistically significant structures were observed in the nK+ invariant-mass distribution. The upper limit on the gammad-->DeltaTheta+ integrated cross section has been calculated and found to be between 5 and 25 nb, depending on the production model assumed. The upper limit on the differential cross section is also reported.

Search for the Theta+ pentaquark in the reaction gammad --> pK-K+n

A search for the Theta+ in the reaction gammad --> pK-K+n was completed using the CLAS detector at Jefferson Lab. A study of the same reaction, published earlier, reported the observation of a narrow Theta+ resonance. The present experiment, with more than 30 times the integrated luminosity of our earlier measurement, does not show any evidence for a narrow pentaquark resonance. The angle-integrated upper limit on Theta+ production in the mass range of 1.52-1.56 GeV/c2 for the gammad --> pK-Theta+ reaction is 0.3 nb (95% C.L.). This upper limit depends on assumptions made for the mass and angular distribution of Theta+ production. Using Lambda(1520) production as an empirical measure of rescattering in the deuteron, the cross section upper limit for the elementary gamman --> K-Theta+ reaction is estimated to be a factor of 10 higher, i.e., approximately 3 nb (95% C.L.).

Anticharmed pentaquark from B decays

We explore the possibility of observing the anticharmed pentaquark state from the theta(c)npi(+) decay of B mesons produced in B-factory experiments. We first show that the observed branching ratio of the B(+) to lambda(-)(c)p pi(+), as well as its open histograms, can be remarkably well explained by assuming that the decay proceeds first through the pi(+) D(0) (or D(*0)) decay, and then through the subsequent decay of the virtual D(0) or D(*0) mesons to lambda(-)(c)p. We then note that the theta(c)can be similarly produced when the virtual D(0) or D(*0) decay into an antinucleon and a theta(c). Combining the present theoretical estimates for the ratio g(DNlambda(c))/g(DNtheta(c)) approximately 13 and g(D*Ntheta(c)) approximately 1/3g(DNtheta(c)), we find that the anticharmed pentaquark theta(c), which was predicted to be bound by several model calculations, can be produced via B(+)--> theta(c)npi(+), and be observed from the B-factory experiments through the weak decay of theta(c)--> pK(+) pi(-) pi(-).

Search for Theta+ (1540) Pentaquark in High-Statistics Measurement of gammap-->K0K+n at CLAS

The exclusive reaction gammap-->K0K+n was studied in the photon energy range between 1.6 and 3.8 GeV searching for evidence of the exotic baryon Theta+ (1540)-->nK+. The decay to nK+requires the assignment of strangeness S=+1 to any observed resonance. Data were collected with the CLAS detector at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 70 pb-1. No evidence for the Theta+ pentaquark was found. Upper limits were set on the production cross section as function of center-of-mass angle and nK+ mass. The 95% C.L. upper limit on the total cross section for a narrow resonance at 1540 MeV was found to be 0.8 nb.

Variational Monte Carlo study of pentaquark states

Accurate numerical solution of the five-body Schrödinger equation is effected via variational Monte Carlo calculations. The spectrum is assumed to exhibit a narrow resonance with strangeness S = +1. A fully antisymmetrized and pair-correlated five-quark wave function is obtained for the assumed nonrelativistic Hamiltonian, which has spin, isospin, and color dependent pair interactions and many-body confining terms, which are fixed by the nonexotic spectra. Gauge field dynamics are modeled via flux-tube exchange factors. The energy determined for the ground states with J(pi) = (1/2)- ((1/2)+) is 2.22 (2.50) GeV. A lower energy negative parity state is consistent with recent lattice results. The short-range structure of the state is analyzed via its diquark content.

Search for exotic baryons in 800 GeV pp-->pXi+/-piX reactions

We report the results of a high-statistics, sensitive search for narrow baryon resonances decaying to Xi-pi-, Xi-pi+, Xi+pi-, and Xi+pi+. The only resonances observed are the well known Xi0(1530) and Xi0(1530). No evidence is found for the states near 1862 MeV, previously reported by NA49 [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 042003 (2003)]. At the 95% confidence level, we find the upper limit for the production of a Gaussian enhancement with sigma=7.6 MeV in the Xi-pi- effective mass spectrum to be 0.3% of the number of observed Xi0(1530)-->Xi-pi+. We find similarly restrictive upper limits for an enhancement at 1862 MeV in the Xi-pi+, Xi+pi-, and Xi+pi+ mass spectra.

Search for strange-pentaquark production in e+e- annihilation at sqrt[s] = 10.58 GeV

We search for strange-pentaquark states that have been previously reported by other experiments--the Theta (1540)(+), Xi(5)(1860)(--), and Xi(5)(1860)(0)--in 123 fb(-1) of data recorded with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II e(+)e(-) storage ring. We find no evidence for these states and set 95% confidence level upper limits on the number of Theta(1540)(+) and Xi(5)(1860)(--) pentaquarks produced per e(+)e(-) annihilation into qq and Gamma(4S) decay. For qq events the Theta(1540)(+) [Xi(5)(1860)(--)] limit is about 8 [4] times lower than the rates measured for ordinary baryons of similar mass.

Study for the pentaquark potential in SU(3) lattice QCD

We perform the first study of the static pentaquark (5Q) potential V(5Q) in SU(3) quenched lattice QCD with 16(3) x 32 and beta = 6.0. From the 5Q Wilson loop, V(5Q) is calculated in a gauge-invariant manner, with the smearing method to enhance the ground-state component. V(5Q) is well described by the OGE-plus-multi-Y ansatz: a sum of the one-gluon-exchange (OGE) Coulomb term and the multi-Y-type linear term proportional to the minimal total length of the flux tube linking the five quarks. Comparing with QQ and3Q potentials, we find a universality of the string tension, sigma(QQ) approximately sigma(3Q) approximately sigma(5Q), and the OGE result for Coulomb coefficients.

Pentaquarks uudds with one color sextet diquark

The masses of pentaquarks uudds are calculated within the framework of a semirelativistic effective QCD Hamiltonian using a diquark picture. This approximation allows a correct treatment of the confinement, assumed here to be similar to a Y junction. With only color antitriplet diquarks, the mass of the pentaquark candidate Theta with positive parity is found around 2.2 GeV. It is shown that, if a color sextet diquark is present, the lowest uudds pentaquark is characterized by a much smaller mass with a negative parity. A mass below 1.7 GeV is computed if the masses of the color antitriplet and color sextet diquarks are taken similar.

Limits for the central production of Theta+ and Xi(--)pentaquarks in 920-GeV pA collisions

We have searched for Theta+(1540) and Xi(--)(1862) pentaquark candidates in proton-induced reactions on C, Ti, and W targets at midrapidity and square root of s = 41.6 GeV. In 2 x 10(8) inelastic events we find no evidence for narrow (sigma approximately 5 MeV) signals in the Theta+ --> pK0(S) and Xi(--) --> Xi- pi- channels; our 95% C.L. upper limits (UL) for the inclusive production cross section times branching fraction B dsigma/dy/(y approximately 0) are (4-16) mub/N for a Theta+ mass between 1521 and 1555 MeV, and 2.5 mub/N for the Xi(--). The UL of the yield ratio of Theta+/Lambda(1520) < (3-12)% is significantly lower than model predictions. Our UL of B Xi(--)/Xi(1530)0 < 4% is at variance with the results that have provided the first evidence for the Xi(--).

Lattice study of the exotic s = +1 baryon

We propose S = +1 baryon interpolating operators, which are based on an exotic description of the antidecuplet baryon, like the diquark-diquark-antiquark structure. By using one of the new operators, the mass spectrum of the spin-1/2 pentaquark states is calculated in quenched lattice QCD at beta = 6/g(2) = 6.2 on a 32(3) x 48 lattice. It is found that the J(P) assignment of the lowest Theta(uudds) state is most likely (1/2)(-). We also calculate the mass of the charm analog of the Theta and find that the Theta(c)(uuddc) state lies much higher than the DN threshold, in contrast to several model predictions.