Observation of high mass μ+μ− pairs at the ISR

Abstract Observation of 16 μ + μ − pairs of invariant mass greater than 2.7 GeV/ c 2 in the reaction pp → μ + μ − + anything at s = 52 GeV at the CERN Intersecting Storage Rings (ISR) is reported. These events can be interpreted as originating from J(3.1) decay into μ + μ − . Their p T distribution suggests a hadronic production. The cross section for J production is given and compared to the cross section for single lepton production. We conclude that J(3.1) production cannot fully account for single lepton production.