Direct measurement of the Chudakov effect

Experimental results for the restricted energy loss of pairs created from 1-178 GeV photons in a thin Au target and subsequently passing a CCD detector are presented. It is shown that pairs-when detected close to the creation vertex-suffer a reduced energy loss due to the internal screening of the charges constituting the pair. Furthermore, the ability to measure directly the energy of the pair by calorimetry enables a comparison with theory as a function of energy. The observed phenomenon is in good qualitative agreement with general expectations from the Chudakov effect but indicates a quantitative disagreement with either of two mutually disagreeing theories. © 2008 The American Physical Society.