Simple Empirical Representation of the Charged Multiplicity Distributions in Proton-Proton Collisions

Abstract

The charged-prong multiplicity ratios $\frac{{\sigma }_n}{{\sigma }_{\mathrm{inel}}}$, when considered as a function of the average multiplicity $〈n〉$, are shown to be well represented over a wide energy range by an empirical formula having a single, energy-independent, free parameter. This representation is similar to the one used by Bozóki and co-workers in 1968. It possesses the scaling property recently discussed by Koba, Nielsen, and Olesen.