Patrick Collins (ASU)
Beam asymmetry in η and η' meson photoproduction off the proton
Abstract
The excitation spectrum of the proton is comprised of many broad
overlapping resonances. Due to this feature, investigations of individual
resonances are challenging. An excellent tool in helping understand the
spectrum is eta and eta-prime meson photoproduction from the proton.
Because this meson has isospin zero, it can be seen as an ``isospin
filter'' for the nucleon resonance spectrum. Differential cross section
data has been the primary tool used to study eta and eta-prime meson
photoproduction. There have been a comparatively smaller number of beam
asymmetry measurements for eta photoproduction, and no measurements of
eta-prime beam asymmetry. I will also discuss how the new measurements
will be useful in understanding the structure and excited states of the
proton.