Diffractive meson production from virtual photons with odd charge-parity exchange

摘要

We calculate the cross section of diffractive charge-parity (C=+1) neutral meson production in virtual photon proton collision at high energies. Due to the opposite (C)-parities of photon and meson (M^+) ((M^+ = eta_C, pi^0, a_2)) this process probes the (t)-channel (C=-1) odderon exchange which is described here as noninteracting three–gluon exchange. Estimates for the cross section of inelastic diffractive process (gamma^* p o eta_C X_p) are presented. The total cross section of diffractive (eta_C) meson photoproduction is found to be 47 pb. The cross sections for the diffractive production of light mesons ((pi^0, a_2)) in (gamma^* p) collisions are of the same order if the photon virtuality (Q^2) is ( m^2_C).