The rise of total, elastic and inelastic hadronic cross sections at high energies is investigated by means of an analytical parametrization, with the exponent of the leading logarithm contribution as a free fit parameter. Using derivative dispersion relations with one subtraction, two different fits to proton-proton and antiproton-proton total cross section and ρ parameter data are developed, reproducing well the experimental information in the energy region 5 GeV-7 TeV. The parametrization for the total cross sections is then extended to fit the elastic (integrated) cross section data in the same energy region, with satisfactory results. From these empirical results we extract the energy dependence of several physical quantities: inelastic cross section, ratios elastic/total, inelastic/total cross sections, ratio total-cross-section/elasticslope, elastic slope and optical point. All data, fitted and predicted, are quite well described. We find a statistically consistent solution indicating: (1) an increase of the hadronic cross sections with the energy faster than the logsquared bound by Froissart and Martin; (2) asymptotic limits 1/3 and 2/3 for the ratios elastic/total and inelastic/total cross sections, respectively; a result in agreement with unitarity. These indications corroborate recent theoretical arguments by Azimov on the rise of the total cross section.

A comparative study on some representative parametrizations for the total and elastic cross-sections as a function of energy is presented. The dataset comprises pp andpp scattering in the c.m energy interval 5 GeV -8 TeV. The parametrization for the total cross-section at low and intermediate energies follows the usual reggeonic structure (non-degenerate trajectories). For the leading high-energy pomeron contribution, we consider three distinct analytic parametrizations: either a power (P ) law, or a log-squared (L2) law or a log-raised-to-γ (Lγ) law, where the exponent γ is treated as a real free fit parameter. The parametrizations are also extended to fit the elastic (integrated) cross-section data in the same energy interval. Our main conclusions are the following: (1) the data reductions with the logarithmic laws show strong dependence on the unknown energy scale involved, which is treated here either as a free parameter or fixed at the energy threshold; (2) the fit results with the P law, the L2 law (free scale) and the Lγ law (fixed scale and exponent γ above 2) are all consistent within their uncertainties and with the experimental data up to 7 TeV, but they partially underestimate the high-precision TOTEM measurement at 8 TeV;(3) once compared with these results, the L2 law with fixed scale is less consistent with the data and, in the case of a free scale, this pomeron contribution decreases as the energy increases below the scale factor (which lies above the energy cutoff); (4) in all cases investigated, the predictions for the asymptotic ratio between the elastic and total cross-sections, within the uncertainties, do not exceed the value 0.430 (therefore, below the black-disc limit) and the results favor rational limits between 1/3 and 2/5. We are led to conclude that the rise of the hadronic cross-sections at the highest energies still constitutes an open problem, demanding further and detailed investigation.

We present the results of fitting elastic $pp$ differential cross section data at 23.5 $\leq \sqrt{s} \leq$ 62.5 GeV with a novel analytic parametrization for the scattering amplitude. Making use of a fitting method, the errors from the free parameters are propagated to the imaginary part of the eikonal in the momentum transfer space. A novel systematic study of the effects coming from data at large momentum transfer is also performed. We find statistical evidence for the existence of eikonal zeros in the interval of momentum transfer 5-9 $GeV^{2}$.Comment: Text with 9 pages in Revtex (preprint form), 8 figures in PostScript. Replaced with small changes. Final version to be published in Physical Review

The energy dependence of the total hadronic cross section at high energies is investigated with focus on the recent experimental result by the TOTEM Collaboration at 7 TeV and the Froissart-Martin bound. On the basis of a class of analytical parametrization with the exponent γ in the leading logarithm contribution as a free parameter, different variants of fits to pp andpp total cross section data above 5 GeV are developed. Two ensembles are considered, the first comprising data up to 1.8 TeV, the second also including the data collected at 7 TeV. We shown that in all fit variants applied to the first ensemble the exponent is statistically consistent with γ = 2. Applied to the second ensemble, however, the same variants yield γ's above 2, a result already obtained in two other analysis, by U. Amaldi et al. and by the UA4/2 Collaboration. As recently discussed by Ya. I. Azimov, this faster-than-squared-logarithm rise does not necessarily violate unitarity. Our results suggest that the energy dependence of the hadronic total cross section at high energies still constitute an open problem. PACS numbers: 13.85.-t Hadron-induced high-and super-high-energy interactions, 13.85.Lg Total cross sections, 11.10.Jj Asymptotic problems and properties

Starting from a short range expansion of the inelastic overlap function, capable of describing quite well the elastic pp and pp scattering data, we obtain extensions to the inelastic channel, through unitarity and an impact parameter approach. Based on geometrical arguments we infer some characteristics of the elementary hadronic process and this allows an excellent description of the inclusive multiplicity distributions in pp and pp collisions. With this approach we quantitatively correlate the violations of both geometrical and KNO scaling in an analytical way. The physical picture from both channels is that the geometrical evolution of the hadronic constituents is principally reponsible for the energy dependence of the physical quantities rather than the dynamical (elementary) interaction itself.