Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-symmetry-and-relativity-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2015/3/c/solution

Choose the kaon momentum along and the first pion along . Momentum conservation gives
Both pions have mass . Apply the on-shell condition to the second pion, using :
Substitute and . The equal daughter masses cancel, leaving
With the supplied rest energies and MeV,
The second pion travels below the parent axis, at
Reflection in the axis gives the equivalent opposite-sign configuration. The condition requires MeV for this perpendicular first-pion geometry. The given MeV lies within that range; the geometry cannot be extrapolated to an arbitrarily boosted kaon.
Figure 1.
Pion decay tracks, a spacelike event separation and its simultaneous frame
. Original calculation from the supplied masses and proper lifetimes. The laboratory separation is shown in its actual decay plane; a boost along that separation makes the two decay events simultaneous. Details.

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