THE AXIAL VECTOR CURRENT IN BETA DECAY. Technical Note No. 17

Technical Report · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1960

OSTI ID:4185945

Feynman, R P; Gell-Mann, M; Levy, M

In order to derive in a convincing manner the formula of Goldberger and Treiman for the rate of changed pion decay, the possibility that the divengence of the axial vector current in beta decay may be proportional to the pion field is considered. Three models of the pion-nucleon interaction (and the weak current) are presented that have the required property. The first, using gradient coupling, has the advantage that it is easily generalized to strange particles, but the disadvantages of being unrenormalizable and of bringing in the vector and axial vector currents in an unsymmetrical way. The second model, using a strong interaction proposed by Schwinger and a weak current proposed by Polkinghorne. is renormalizable and symmetrical between V and A, but it involves postulating a new particle and is hard to extend to strange particles. The third model resembles the second one except that it is not necessary to introduce a new particle. (Renormalizability in the usual sense is then lost, however). Further research along these lines is suggested, including consideration of the possibility that the pion decay rate may be plausibly obtained under less stringent conditions. (auth)

• Research Organization: California Inst. of Tech., Pasadena; College de France, Paris; Paris. Universite, Orsay. Ecole Normale Superieure. Faculte des Sciences
• NSA Number: NSA-14-015273
• OSTI ID: 4185945
• Report Number(s): AFOSR-TN-60-294
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

DECAY
FERMI INTERACTION
FIELD THEORY
GOLDBERGER-TREIMAN RELATION
INTERACTIONS
KAONS
MASS
MATHEMATICS
NUCLEONS
PARTICLE MODELS
PARTICLES
PHYSICS
PIONS
PIONS-MINUS
PIONS-PLUS
QUANTUM MECHANICS
STRANGE PARTICLES