RAPIDITY DISTRIBUTIONS OF PI(-) IN (D,ALPHA,C)TA COLLISIONS AT 4.2-GEV C-PER-NUCLEON/

The rapidity distributions of pi(-) mesons in different transverse-mom entum intervals are analyzed for dTa, alpha Ta, and CTa collisions at 4.2 GeV/c per projectile nucleon. The effect of the target atomic weig ht on the rapidity and transverse-momentum distributions of pi(-) meso ns is probed by comparing data on CC and CTa collisions. Data on CTa c ollisions are confronted with predictions of the quark-gluon string mo del. The model qualitatively reproduces the observed distributions of pi(-) mesons and provides a satisfactory quantitative description of t he ratio of pi(-) yields in CTa and CC collisions as a function of the transverse momentum p(t) for p(t) < 0.5 GeV/c.