Analyzing correlation functions with tesseral and Cartesian spherical harmonics

The dependence of interparticle correlations on the orientation of particle relative momentum can yield unique information on the space-time features of emission in reactions with multiparticle final states. In the present paper, the benefits of a representation and analysis of the three-dimensional correlation information in terms of surface spherical harmonics is presented. The harmonics include the standard complex tesseral harmonics and the real Cartesian harmonics. Mathematical properties of the lesser known Cartesian harmonics are illuminated. The physical content of different angular harmonic components in a correlation is described. The resolving power of different final-state effects with regard to determining angular features of emission regions is investigated. The considered final-state effects include identity interference, strong interactions, and Coulomb interactions. The correlation analysis in terms of spherical harmonics is illustrated with the cases of Gaussian and blast-wave sources for proton-charged meson and baryon-baryon pairs