----- Original Message -----
From: "Alberto Monteiro" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Brin-L" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Wednesday, August 15, 2001 1:37 PM
Subject: Re: Black holes and such
> Dan Minette wrote:
> >
> >> What is the definition of the size of an electron?
> >
> > The lower limit for dpdx>h (maybe h-bar, but that just
> > lowers the size limit by 2*pi). h=~4*10^-15 eVs
> > (electron volt seconds). The maximum momentum
> > transfer observed in electron-proton scattering is,
> > IIRC, about 200 Gev/c.
> >
> So, this momentum transfer generates the dp? What is
> the logic for this? I would imagine that in an
> electron-electron "head-on" collision there might
> be a transfer of whatever moment the coming electron
> had... but this is probably too much billiard-ball
> modeling, and wrong :-)
>
The collisions are quark/electron, not electron/electron: its a
proton-electron colliding beam. In electron-electron, one can't tell which
electron is which, so a momentum transfer of 100% looks the same as one of
0%.
Think of the Rutherford experiment, and you will get a feel for how people
are looking at structure for the electron. An example of this from high
energy physics was the use of high transverse momentum "jets" of particles
coming out from the collisions. People look for the same type of jets as
evidence for structure within the electron.
Dan M.
