Pion production in nuclear charge exchange reactions A(t, 3He)

Abstract The charge exchange reaction (t, 3 He) on carbon and magnesium targets is investigated in experiments using a streamer chamber. The experimental pion longitudinal momentum spectrum is compared with the calculated one for events with a single secondary pion. From this comparison it follows that the contribution from quasi-free Δ − excitation in the target nucleus in a single pion channel is only 60–70%. The momentum of the pions in the remaining fraction of events is significantly higher than that of the pions produced in delta de-excitation. The contribution from several possible processes is analyzed. The data indicate a significant role of coherent pion production via N(1440) or/and N(1520) in the target nucleus while part of the pion spectrum can be explained by projectile excitation.