Event Pictures

Event pictures are computer-generated representations of the information collected by the detector layers. The computer is programmed to convert all the information from the detector. For example, a sequence of "hits" to wires in the drift chamber allows it to determine a possible particle track and calculate the particle's momentum. Likewise, information from the calorimeter allows a calculation of energy-deposition in a given region. The pictures are used to check that everything is functioning and to display a few cases. Since tens-of-thousands to millions of events may be recorded in a single experiment, the pictures are not the only way data is analyzed. The real data analysis is all a matter of computer studies that compare the predicted patterns of many events with the observed patterns.

The event pictures are, however, an important tool for physicists to check that both their detector and their computer programs are working correctly.  The examples below show some of the different possible events produced at SLD. Each event is initiated by the collision of an electron with a positron at the center of the detector and with just the right energy to annihilate and produce a Z particle.

The following are links to individual event pictures with explanations.

• Electron-positron Scattering
• Muon Pair Production
• Tau-pair Production
• Typical Hadronic Event
• Multi-jet Hadronic Events

An index of these and other event pictures is also available.