A strong signal for double parton (DP) scattering is observed in a 16 pb(-1) sample of <(p)over bar p> --> gamma/pi(0) + 3 jets + X data from the CDF experiment at the Fermilab Tevatron. In DP events, two separate hard scatterings take place in a single <(p)over bar p> collision. We isolate a large sample of data (similar to 14 000 events) of which 53% are found to be DP. The process-independent parameter of double parton scattering, sigma(eff), is obtained without reference to theoretical calculations by comparing observed DP events to events with hard scatterings in separate <(p)over bar p> collisions. The result sigma(eff) = (14.5 +/- 1.7(-2.3)(+1.7)) mb represents a significant improvement over previous measurements, and is used to constrain simple models of parton spatial density. The Feynman x dependence of sigma(eff) is investigated and none is apparent. Further, no evidence is found for kinematic correlations between the two scatterings in DP events
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.