Simplified intranuclear cascade approach to inclusive ( p,π-xn) reactions near threshold

We calculate the total inclusive ( p,π-xn) reaction cross section for 200 MeV protons on 209Bi using a simplified intranuclear cascade model in which only one particle at a time is tracked through the nucleus. Computer time is kept to a minimum by multiplying the very small NN→NNπ probability by a weighting factor. The nucleon and pion charge exchange mechanisms contribute more than half the cross section. The predictions are sensitive to choice of energy in the NN→NNπ input cross sections, but a reasonable choice gives cross sections in agreement with experiment. The predicted ( p,π-xn) cross section grows rapidly from T/sub lab/ = 160 MeV (just above threshold) to 220 MeV