# A conjecture on Centauro speciesTo be published Proc. VI Hadron Physics - 1998, 16-21 March, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil.

## Abstract

It is argued that Centauro events observed in cosmic ray experiments may be characteristic of only $`pp`$ and not $`\overline{p}p`$ interactions.

The failure of “artificial production” of Centauro events  in $`\overline{p}p`$ machines , led to some conjectures on the origin of the phenomena, such as genetic correlations, nuclear effects by heavy nucleus, extragalactic source, and others. However, all these conjectures exclude one possibility: that the unusual events could only be associated with $`pp`$ interactions at sufficiently high energies and not with $`\overline{p}p`$ . Generically, it does not seem unnatural to think that an exceedingly wide production associated with high energy matter-antimatter annihilation ($`\overline{p}p`$) could be compensated by some kind of suppression effect (pionic component) in matter-matter reactions ($`pp`$). In this communication we shall briefly discuss this conjecture based on one type of physical quantity determined from both cosmic ray and accelerator experiments, namely the total cross section.

Since accelerator information on $`pp`$ interactions are available only below the limiar of production , the high mean transverse momentum and multiplicities (characteristics of Centauro events) observed through the emulsion chambers, and not present at lower energies, could originate some additional contributions to the total $`pp`$ cross sections, that is, higher values than general extrapolations from lower (accelerator) energies usually show. Equivalently, if this extra contribution is present only in the $`pp`$ channel at sufficiently high energies and not in the $`\overline{p}p`$ one, we could expect total $`pp`$ cross sections higher than the $`\overline{p}p`$ ones at the energies where Centauro events are observed, namely, $`\sqrt{s}500GeV`$. For this reason we shall consider this feature as a possible signal for Centauro production.

Figure 1 shows experimental information presently available on $`pp`$ and $`\overline{p}p`$ total cross sections at the highest energy region from both accelerator and cosmic ray experiments. In the last case, informations on $`\sigma _t(pp)`$  comes from proton-air cross sections. It is important to observe that antiprotons are not expected to have any significant role in the bulk of these informations and this is a basic point in our argument. Now, since what is extracted in these experiments is the proton-air cross section, the determination of the $`pp`$ cross section depends, in particular, on nuclear model assumptions  and this has originated some puzzles and discrepances between different analysis, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. Concerning all these results, a central point is the fact that the analysis by Nikolaev seems correct, has never been criticized and the same is true for the Gaisser, Sukhatme and Yodh (GSY) result. Therefore, as qualitatively shown in Fig. 1, if we assume that the Nikolaev’s and GSY’s results are the correct ones together with $`pp`$ data from accelerators (all black symbols in the figure), experimental informations presently available do not rule out an increase of $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ faster than $`\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)`$ above $`500GeV`$. We could see this as a signature of an additional contribution in the $`pp`$ channel, not observed up to the highest energy accelerator data and not present in the $`\overline{p}p`$ channel.

Concerning this unusual possibility of a crossing envolving $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ and $`\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)`$ , we recall that from the general principles of QFT, if the Froissart-Martin bound is saturated then asymptoticaly we may have 

$$\mathrm{\Delta }\sigma _t=|\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)\sigma _t(pp)|C\frac{\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)+\sigma _t(pp)}{logs}Clogs,$$
(1)   
leading to a wide range of possible extrapolations, including the crossing. Also, the Odderon hypothesis  (C-odd Regge trajectory) predicts $`\mathrm{\Delta }\sigma logs`$ and the approach satisfies analyticity and unitarity. We conclude that general principles and some theoretical approaches, as the Odderon, do not rule out the possibility of an additional contribution in the $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ , leading to a faster increase with the energy than $`\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)`$ .

Concerning “model independent” fits to experimental data based on dispersion relations , we recall that dispersion relations are rigorous consequences of local QFT once one assumes analyticity, crossing, unitarity and, the less quoted, polynomial boundedness. However, it has been shown by Khuri  that a failure of the last assumption at future high energy accelerators can lead to a breakdown of QFT and dispersion relations, the fundamental tool in “model-independent” analysis of $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ and $`\sigma _t(\overline{p}p)`$ data.

All the facts presented in this short communication do not ruled out the possibility that an additional contribution to $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ may be present at the highest energies and that it is absent in both $`\sigma _t(pp)`$ at lower energies and in the $`\overline{p}p`$ channel in all the energies. Our conjecture attributes this asymmetry to the unusual events observed in cosmic-ray hadronic interactions, the Centauro species. This could explain why no signals of Centauro events were observed in $`\overline{p}p`$ colliders.

Acknowledgments

I am grateful to E. H. Shibuya, C. O. Escobar and C. D. Chinellato for valuable comments and also to A. F. Martini.

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