On the role of the time scale Δt in Bose–Einstein correlations

Abstract: The time scale parameter Δt, which appears in the Bose–Einstein Correlations (BEC) treated in terms of the Heisenberg uncertainty relations, is reexamined. Arguments are given for the role of Δt to be a measure of the particles'' emission time rather than representing the strength property of the correlated particles. Thus in the analyses of the hadronic decays, the Δt given value of , is the particles'' emission time determined by the lifetime. In heavy ion collisions Δt measures the emission time of the particles produced in a nucleus of atomic number A. This emission time is shown here to be equal to that is, proportional to the nucleus surface area. This relation agrees rather well with the experimental Δt values deduced from the BEC analyses of heavy ion collisions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]