Measurement of the Vector and Tensor Asymmetries at Large Missing Momentum in Quasielastic $(\vec e, e'p)$ Electron Scattering from Deuterium

We report the measurement of the beam-vector and tensor asymmetries and in quasielastic electrodisintegration of the deuteron at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator Center up to missing momentum of 500~ MeV/c. Data were collected simultaneously over a momentum transfer range ~(GeV/c) with the Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid using an internal deuterium gas target, polarized sequentially in both vector and tensor states. The data are compared with calculations. The beam-vector asymmetry is found to be directly sensitive to the -wave component of the deuteron and have a zero-crossing at a missing momentum of about 320~ MeV/c, as predicted. The tensor asymmetry at large missing momentum is found to be dominated by the influence of the tensor force in the neutron-proton final-state interaction. The new data provide a strong constraint on theoretical models.