Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2003/ib/paper-4/18a/solution

In the pion rest frame, conservation of momentum makes the muon and massless neutrino momenta equal and opposite, of magnitude . The neutrino energy is , while the muon satisfies . Energy conservation gives . Squaring after substituting yields
The relativistic two-body decay speed is thus
Choose moving with velocity along relative to , so the pion has velocity in and speed . With , the four-dimensional Lorentz transformation is
The muon's four-momentum is before the boost. The same matrix gives
Velocity and momentum have the same spatial direction. The unsigned deflection angle from the positive axis therefore satisfies
Choosing the opposite boost makes the pion move along positive and reverses , leaving this speed-based angle formula unchanged.

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