Observation of inclusive D*(+/-) production in the decay of Y(1S)

We present a study of the inclusive D*(+/-) production in the decay of Y(1S) using (98.6 +/- 0.9) X 10(6) Y(2S) mesons collected with the BABAR detector at the Y(2S) resonance. Using the decay chainY(2S) -> pi(+)pi Y-(1S), Y(1S) -> D*X-+/-, where X is unobserved, we measure the branching fractionB[Y(1S) -> D*X-+/-] = (2.52 +/- 0.13(stat) +/- 0.15(syst)% and the D*(+/-) momentum distribution in the rest frameof the Y(1S). We find evidence for an excess of D*+/- production over the expected rate from the virtual photon annihilation process Y(1S) -> gamma* -> c (c) over bar -> D*X-+/-.