Empirical Fit to Inelastic Electron-Deuteron and Electron-Neutron Resonance Region Transverse Cross Sections

Abstract

An empirical fit is described to measurements of inclusive inelastic electron-deuteron cross sections in the kinematic r ange of four-momentum transfer $0 \le Q^2<10$ GeV$^2$ and final state invariant mass $1.1<W<3.2$ GeV. The deuteron fit relies on a fit of the ratio $R_p$ of longitudinal to transverse cross sections for the proton, and the assumption $R_p=R_n$. The underlying fit parameters describe the average cross section for proton and neutron, with a plane-wave impulse approximation used to fit to the deuteron data. An additional term is used to fill in the dip between the quasi-elastic peak and the $\Delta(1232)$ resonance. The mean deviation of data from the fit is 3%, with less than 4% of the data points deviating from the fit by more than 10%.