Muon-Proton Inelastic Scattering and Vector Dominance

Abstract

Results from muon-proton inelastic scattering are used to investigate the form of ${\sigma }_{\exp }(q^2, K)$, the quantity commonly called the "virtual photon-proton total cross section." Fits to ${\sigma }_{\exp }$ have been made for photon energies 0.6≤6.5, and 4-momentum transfer squared $\left|q^2\right|$ up to 1.2 ${(\mathrm{G}\mathrm{e}\mathrm{V}/\mathit{c})}^2$. Measurements of the real photon-proton total cross section ${\sigma }_{\gamma p}\mathrm{}\left(K\right)\mathrm{}$ have been included in the fits. The forms of rho-dominance theory which predict ${\sigma }_{\exp }(q^2, K)=\frac{{\sigma }_{\gamma p}\mathrm{}\left(K\right)\mathrm{}}{(1+\frac{\left|q^2\right|}{{m_{\rho }}^2})}$ are in agreement with the data.