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A measurement of the τ lifetime

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Zeitschrift für Physik C Particles and Fields

Abstract

We have reconstructed 695 three-track τ decay vertices using a high resolution drift chamber close to the interaction point. From the distribution of decay lengths we measure the lifetime to be (3.06 ±0.20±0.14)×10−13 s. Using this result we find that the ratio of charged weak coupling constant for the τ to that of the μ,G τ/G μ=0.967±0.040 consistent with the concept of lepton universality.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. B. Bock

    Present address: Krupp Atlas Elektr. GmbH, Bremen, FRG

  2. J. Chwastowski & A. Eskreys

    Present address: Inst. of Nuclear Physics, Cracow, Poland

  3. K. Genser & R. Walczak

    Present address: Warsaw University, Poland

  4. P. Mättig & J. M. Pawlak

    Present address: IPP Canada, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada

  5. D. J. Mellor

    Present address: Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA

  6. G. E. Forden

    Present address: SUNY Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY, USA

  7. L. Labarga

    Present address: SLAC, Stanford, CA, USA

  8. A. Caldwell

    Present address: Columbia University, NY, USA

  9. D. Strom

    Present address: University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

  10. E. Wicklund

    Present address: California Inst. of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. I. Physikalisches Institut der RWTH, D-5100, Aachen, Federal Republic of Germany

    W. Braunschweig, R. Gerhards, F. J. Kirschfink & H. -U. Martyn

  2. Physikalisches Institut der Universität, D-5300, Bonn, Federal Republic of Germany

    B. Bock, H. M. Fischer, H. Hartmann, J. Hartmann, E. Hilger, A. Jocksch & R. Wedemeyer

  3. H.H. Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, BS8 1TL, Bristol, UK

    B. Foster, A. J. Martin & A. J. Sephton

  4. Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY, D-2000, Hamburg, Federal Republic of Germany

    E. Bernardi, J. Chwastowski, A. Eskreys, K. Gather, K. Genser, H. Hultschig, P. Joos, H. Kowalski, A. Ladage, B. Löhr, D. Lüke, P. Mättig, D. Notz, J. M. Pawlak, K. -U. Pösnecker, E. Ros, W. Schütte, D. Trines, R. Walczak & G. Wolf

  5. Institut für Physik, Universität, D-4600, Dortmund, Federal Republic of Germany

    H. Kolanoski

  6. II. Institut für Experimentalphysik der Universität, D-2000, Hamburg, Federal Republic of Germany

    T. Kracht, J. Krüger, E. Lohrmann, G. Poelz & W. Zeuner

  7. Department of Physics, Imperial College, SW7 2AZ, London, UK

    D. M. Binnie, J. Hassard, J. Shulman & D. Su

  8. Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    F. Barreiro, A. Leites & J. del Peso

  9. Department of Nuclear Physics, Oxford University, OX1 3RH, Oxford, UK

    C. Balkwill, M. G. Bowler, P. N. Burrows, R. J. Cashmore, G. P. Heath, D. J. Mellor, P. Ratoff, I. Silvester, I. Tomalin & E. Veitch

  10. Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, OX11 0QX, Didcot, UK

    G. E. Forden, J. C. Hart & D. H. Saxon

  11. Fachbereich Physik der Universität-Gesamthochschule, D-5900, Siegen, Federal Republic of Germany

    S. Brandt, M. Holder & L. Labarga

  12. Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel

    Y. Eisenberg, U. Karshon, G. Mikenberg, A. Montag, D. Revel, E. Ronat, A. Shapira, N. Wainer & G. Yekutieli

  13. Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin, 53706, Madison, WI, USA

    A. Caldwell, D. Muller, S. Ritz, D. Strom, M. Takashima, E. Wicklund, Sau Lan Wu & G. Zobernig

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  1. W. Braunschweig
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  2. R. Gerhards
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  8. J. Hartmann
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  9. E. Hilger
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Consortia

TASSO Collaboration

Additional information

On leave from Warsaw University, Poland

Now at Hasylab, DESY

Supported by Bundesministerium für Forschung und Technologie

Supported by UK Science and Engineering Research Council

Supported by CAICYT

Supported by the Minerva Gesellschaft für Forschung GmbH

Supported by US Dept. of Energy, contract DE-AC02-76ER000881 and by US Nat. Sci. Foundation Grant no INT-8313994 for travel

Partially supported by grant CPBP 01.06

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TASSO Collaboration., Braunschweig, W., Gerhards, R. et al. A measurement of the τ lifetime. Z. Phys. C - Particles and Fields 39, 331–337 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01548282

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01548282

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