Parity Violation in Forward Angle Elastic Electron-Proton Scattering
- Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
We have measured the parity-violating electroweak asymmetry in the elastic scattering of polarized electrons from the proton at Jefferson Laboratory. The kinematic point (θlab = 12.3 deg. and (Q2) = 0.48 (GeV/c)2) is chosen to provide sensitivity to the strange electric form factor GsE. A 3.36 GeV beam of longitudinally polarized electrons was scattered from protons in a liquid hydrogen target. The scattered flux was detected by a pair of spectrometers which focussed the elastically-scattered electrons onto total-absorption detectors. The detector signals were integrated and digitized by a custom data acquisition system. A feedback system reduced systematic errors by controlling helicity-correlated beam intensity differences at the sub-ppm (part per million) level. The experimental result, A = 14.5 +/- 2.0 (stat) ± 1.1 (syst) ppm, is consistent with the electroweak Standard Model with no additional contributions from strange quarks. In particular, the measurement implies GSE + 0.39 GsM = 0.023 ± 0.040 ± 0.026 (ζGnE), where the last uncertainty is due to the estimated uncertainty in the neutron electric form factor GnE . This result represents the first experimental constraint of the strange electric form factor.
- Research Organization:
- Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (TJNAF), Newport News, VA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84ER40150
- OSTI ID:
- 883372
- Report Number(s):
- JLAB-PHY-01-106; DOE/ER/40150-3922
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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