Inclusive yields of prompt muons in a 70-GeV proton-beam-dump experiment and an estimate of the cross section for charm production

Muon yields are measured in a new beam-dump experiment at IHEP. Possible contributions to these yields of muons originating from semileptonic decays of charmed particles are analyzed. On the basis of this analysis, the cross section for charm production at {radical}s = 11.5 GeV is estimated to be a {sigma}{sub c}{bar c} = {minus}(0.3 {plus_minus} 1.2) {mu}b/nucleon. 19 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs.