Determination of the structure of the X(3872)X(3872) in p¯A collisions

Currently, the structure of the X(3872)X(3872) meson is unknown. Different competing models of the cc¯ exotic state X(3872)X(3872) exist, including the possibilities that this state is either a mesonic molecule with dominating D0D¯⁎0+c.c. composition, a cc¯qq¯ tetraquark, or a cc¯-gluon hybrid state. It is expected that the X(3872)X(3872) state is rather strongly coupled to the p¯p channel and, therefore, can be produced in p¯p and p¯A collisions at PANDA. We propose to test the hypothetical molecular structure of X(3872)X(3872) by studying the D   or D¯⁎ stripping reactions on a nuclear residue.