First Measurement of a Long-Lived π^{+}π^{-} Atom Lifetime.

The adapted DIRAC experiment at the CERN PS accelerator observed for the first time long-lived hydrogenlike pi(+)pi(-) atoms, produced by protons hitting a beryllium target. A part of these atoms crossed the gap of 96 mm between the target and a 2.1 pm thick platinum foil, in which most of them dissociated. Analyzing the observed number of atomic pairs, n(A)(L) = 436(-61)(+157)vertical bar(tot) the lifetime of the 2p state is found to be QED tau(2p) = (0.45(-0.30)(+1.08) vertical bar(tot)) x 10(-11) s, not contradicting the corresponding QED 2p state lifetime r., -P 1.17 x 10(-11) s. This lifetime value is three orders of magnitude larger than our previously measured value of the pi(+) pi(-) atom ground state lifetime r = (3.15(-0.26)(+0.28)vertical bar(tot)) x 10(-15) s. Further studies of long-lived n-+ atoms will allow us to measure energy differences between p and s atomic states and so to discriminate between the isoscalar and isotensor Kin scattering lengths with the aim to check QCD predictions.