Question

We consider a collision of a muon with a proton. The muon has a momentum of 160 GeV/c, the proton a momentum of 190 GeV/c

. a) With the mass of the proton given by mp = 938.27 MeV c 2 and the mass of the muon me = 105.66 MeV c 2 , determine the total energy of the muon and of the proton.

b) Assuming that the muon and the proton collide head on (proton mometum along positive z-axis, electron momentum along negative z-axis), determine the mass of the heaviest particle that could be produced in such a collision.

c) What would be the momentum of this particle?

Answer 1

Solution:

Part(a). Given that:

Now, taoal energy of proton is given by

Similarly, taoal energy of muon is given by

Part(b). By momentum conservation, total momentum of final product is given by

By energy conservation, total momentum of final product is given by

So, the mass of final product is given by

Part(c). The momentum of the final product is given by