Sources of leading pions in π+p and π-p interactions at 16 and 40 GeV/c

The source of leading charged pions in π+p and π-p interactions at 16 and 40 GeV/c, respectively, is studied. We obtain that approximately 50-60 percent of all leading particles (Xsub(πsub(L))>0.4) with a cha.rge opposite to that of incident pion come from the decay of rho0, f and g resonances. The probability of double inelastic exchange decreases with increasing Xsub(πsub(L)) and weakly depends on the energy and charge of incident π-meson