Abstract

We have measured the inclusive cross section for the reaction π−n→pX−− at 21, 205 and 360 GeV/c in the kinematic region |tnp|<1.0 (GeV/c)2. The differential cross sections can be described qualitatively by the reggeized one-pion-exchange amplitude at all momenta studied; however, there is evidence for the contribution of other amplitudes. The extracted π−π− total cross section for 4⪅sππ⪅340 GeV2 is of the order of 10–12 mb. The average number of charged particles and dispersion of the charged particle multiplicity distributions for various sππ intervals are compatible with results observed in hadron-proton interactions.