Features of carbon-carbon interactions at a momentum of 4.2 GeV/c per nucleon that are accompanied by the production of Λ hyperons and K S 0 mesons versus the degree of nuclei collision centrality

Experiemntal data obtained by using the 2-m propane bubble chamber of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Dubna) are used to study the effect collision centrality on the spectra of Λ hyperons and K _S ⁰ mesons produced in carbon-carbon interactions at 4.2 A GeV/c. The multiplicity of participant protons having momenta in excess of 300 MeV/c is taken to be a measure of collision centrality. The features of pions and protons accompanying strange-particle production are also presented. The experimental data in question are compared with the prediction of a modified version of the FRITIOF model. It is shown that strange particles are predominantly produced in central and semicentral collisions. The average kinematical features of K _S ⁰ mesons are found to be indepedent of collision centrality. At the same time, the average transverse momentum of Λ hyperons and the average value of their emission angle increase slowly with increasing degree of collision centrality. The anisotropy of the angular distributions of both Λ hypersons and K _S/0 mesons in the c.m. frame of nucleon-nucleon collisions decreases with increasing collision centrality. The average transverse momentum of K _S ⁰ mesons is approximately 1.6 times higher than the average transverse momentum of π ^? mesons.     

Neutral strange particle production in proton-proton collisions at\sqrt s = 63 GeV

The inclusive cross section for the production ofK _s ⁰ mesons, Λ and \(\bar \Lambda\) particles in proton-proton interactions at \(\sqrt s = 63\) GeV is presented. The produced particles have been detected in the full phase space. Behaviour of the longitudinal and transversal depandences of the cross sections are discussed. The total production cross sections for _s ⁰ mesons and Λ particles was determined to \(\sigma _{{\rm K}_S^0 } = (25.5 \pm 1.4)\) mb andσ _Λ =(7.8±1.2) mb respectively. A strong energy dependence of the production cross sections is observed.     

Leading/nonleading charm-production asymmetry in Σ− p interactions

The asymmetry between the spectra of leading and nonleading charmed mesons that was measured in Σ^? A interactions at p _L=340 GeV/c in the WA89 experiment is described within the Model of Quark-Gluon Strings (QGS model also known as QGSM) under the assumption that there is a fraction of charmed sea quark-antiquark pairs (intrinsic charm) in an interacting hyperon. It is shown that the asymmetries between D ^?-and D ⁺-meson spectra and between D _s ^? -and D _s ⁺ -meson spectra can be approximated by QGSM curves obtained with the same string-fragmentation parameter, a ₁=10, and the same intrinsic-charm fraction, $\delta _{c,\bar c} = 0.01$ , as those that were used in describing D _s ^? /D _s ⁺ -meson asymmetry of π^? A experiments in previous studies. The asymmetry between the spectra of Λ_c and $\bar \Lambda _c $ that was measured in Σ^? A collisions at p _L=600 GeV/c in the E781 experiment is also described within this scheme. The QGSM results are compared with the results of the calculations in the next-to-leading approximation of perturbative QCD that were performed by other authors.     

A partial wave analysis of thef′ region in the reactionK^ - p \to K\bar K\Lambda ^0 at 8.25 GeV/c

A partial wave analysis of theK \(\bar K\) system produced by 8.25 GeV/cK ^? mesons in the reaction \(K^ - p \to K\bar K\Lambda ^{ 0} \) has been performed, taking into account the information provided by the Λ⁰ decay. Thef′ region is dominated byD ₀ ^(?) andD ₁ ⁽⁺⁾ waves. We see no evidence for the production of new 0⁺⁺ states in the mass region 1.05 to 1.75 GeV.     

Estimation of parameters ofK-meson structure functions

On the basis of multiparton recombination model with the use of the Kuti-Weisskopf parametrization there have been analyzed the available experimental data on inclusive spectra of the vector and tensor mesons in the reactionsK ^± p→MX (M=?, φ,K(890),K(1430)) in the kaon fragmentation region at high energies (32–110GeV/c) with the aim to extract the parameters of theK-meson structure functions. For the suppression factor of the kaon strange sea the valueλ = 0.18±0.01 is obtained. The kaon longitudinal momentum fractions carried away by nonstrange and strange valence quarks and sea partons respectively are 〈x _N ^V 〉=0.17, 〈x _S ^V 〉=0.30 and 〈x ^S 〉=0.53.     

Correlation femtoscopy of Kaons in the SELEX experiment

Preliminary results from the correlation femtoscopy of identical kaons in the SELEX experiment (Fermilab E781) are presented. Kaons are selected in inclusive reactions of Σ^?C(Cu) interactions at an initial energy of 610 GeV. Kaon pairs are studied in all possible charged states: K _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ , K _s ⁰ K⁺, K _s ⁰ K^?, K⁺K⁺, K⁺K^? and K^?K^?. The source sizes of the hadronization region of neutral and charged kaon pairs are measured.     

Production of vector and tensor mesons in proton-proton collisions at\sqrt s = 52.5 GeV

Inclusive production of ?⁰,f, andg ⁰ mesons and ofK _s ⁰ ,K ^*0 (892), ? andK ^*0(1430)mesons has been measured at <y>～2.6 and <p _T >～1.1 GeV/c in proton-proton interactions at \(\sqrt s = 52.5\) GeV. The negative particle from the two-body decays of these resonances were identified by a threshold Cerenkov counter and used for triggering. Starting from the measured differential cross section, total inclusive cross sections for the vector and tensor mesons were determined using various parametrizations for they andp _T dependence of the differential cross section. The experimental results are discussed in the framework of production models based on the parton picture. The strangeness suppresion factor λ=(0.30±0.10) due toSU(3) symmetry breaking of the quark sea is derived.     

Strange hadron production in d+Au collisions at RHIC

We report the centrality dependence of transverse mass (m _t ) spectra at mid-rapidity for the identified strange hadrons K _S ⁰ , ? $\Lambda + \bar \Lambda $ and $\Xi ^ - + \bar \Xi ^ + $ in d+Au collisions at RHIC. The measured transverse momentum (p _T ) covers 0.4<p _T <6.0 GeV/c for K _S ⁰ , ø, $\Lambda + \bar \Lambda $ and 0.6<p _T <5.0 GeV/c for $\Xi ^ - + \bar \Xi ^ + $ . The binary collision normalized nuclear modification factors R _CP of these hadrons indicate that the Cronin effect in d+Au collisions has a distinct particle-type dependence. the R _CP ratios show a distinct baryons versus mesons dependence: the R _CP for $\Xi ^ - + \bar \Xi ^ + $ follows that for $\Lambda + \bar \Lambda $ while the R _CP for the ? is close to that for the K _S ⁰ . Similar features have also been observed in Au+Au collisions. Initial parton scattering alone is not sufficient to explain this particle-type dependence. Hadronization processes are likely to be important for determining hadron properties in high-energy collisions as suggested by coalescence and recombination models.     

Inclusive production of neutral strange particles in\bar pp interactions at 70 GeV/c

The inclusive production ofK _s ⁰ , Λ and \(\bar \Lambda \) particles is investigated in 70 GeV/c \(\bar pp\) interactions in an experiment performed at CERN using BEBC equipped with a TST. Differential cross-sections are studied and compared with corresponding data at surrounding energies. Differences withpp data obtained at the same energy allow an estimate of theK _s ⁰ , production cross-section in annihilation processes. Evidence is also given for central \(\Lambda \bar \Lambda \) production.     

Inclusive production ofK s 0 , K s 0 K s 0 andK *±(892) in\bar pp interactions at 3.0, 3.5, 4.0 and 4.5 GeV/c

InclusiveK _s ⁰ andK _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ production in \(\bar pp\) interactions at 3.0, 3.5, 4.0 and 4.5 GeV/c are studied. Cross sections ofK _s ⁰ , K _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ andK ^*±(892) are presented for each incident momentum. The production ofK _s ⁰ andK ^*±(892) through annihilation process is investigated. It is found that the annihilation process is dominant but decreases with incident momentum. The annihilation process is compared withe ⁺ e ^? interactions. Remarkable similarity between them is found in the \({{x_0 = 2E(K_s^0 )} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{x_0 = 2E(K_s^0 )} {\sqrt s }}} \right. \kern-0em} {\sqrt s }}\) distribution. Events with two detectedK _s ⁰ 's are analyzed. The result shows theK _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ pairs are produced in the central region of c.m. system and there is a clearS ^* signal in theK _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ effective mass distribution.     

K S 0 , Λ and ≡ production at intermediate to high pT from Au+Au collisions at \sqrt {s_{NN} } = 39, 11.5 and 7.7 GeV

We report on the p _T dependence of nuclear modification factors (R _CP) for K _S ⁰ , ??, ?? and the $\bar NK_S^0 $ ratios at mid-rapidity from Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 39, 11.5 and 7.7 GeV. At $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 39 GeV, the R _CP data show a baryon/meson separation at intermediate p _T and a suppression for K _S ⁰ for p _T up to 4.5 GeV/c; the $\bar \Lambda K_S^0 $ shows baryon enhancement in the most central collisions. However, at $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 11.5 and 7.7 GeV, R _CP shows less baryon/meson separation and $\bar NK_S^0 $ shows almost no baryon enhancement. These observations indicate that the matter created in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 11.5 or 7.7 GeV might be distinct from that created at $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 39 GeV.     

Neutral strange particle production inK + p interactions at 32 GeV/c

The production properties ofK _s ⁰ , \(\bar \Lambda\) andK ⁺ p interactions at 32 GeV/c are investigated using the final statistics of the experiment. We present total and semi-inclusive cross sections and aver-age multiplicities. Estimates are given of the diffractive dissociation contributions to total and differential cross sections. Thex-,p _T ^?, and transverse mass dependence of inclusive and semi-inclusive distributions is discussed as well as properties of “prompt”K _s ⁰ 's. The ratio of “prompt”K ₈₉₀ ⁺ (K ₈₉₀ ⁰ ) to “prompt”K ⁰ cross sections is measured to be 1.03±0.12 (0.98±0.17). From a comparison of \(\bar \Lambda\) production inK ^± p interactions at 32 GeV/c, we estimate a strange sea-quark suppression of 0.26 ±0.02. The double differential cross sections ofK _s ⁰ 's is studied as a function of Feynman-x andp _T ² , and a Triple-Regge fit performed. The data are compared in detail to versions of the Lund-model for low-p _T hadronic collisions.     

Investigation of inclusive production ofK 0 andK * (892)0 mesons inK + A interactions at 11.2 GeV

Inclusive production ofK ⁰ andK ^* (892)⁰ mesons inK ⁺ A-interactions (A=Be, Cu, Pb) at the energy 11.2 GeV has been investigated to study hadronisation of the leading \(\bar s\) -quark; the results are presented. Double differential cross sections d²σ/dx _f dp _t ² were measured in the region of incident particle fragmentation (0.4≦x _f ≦1,p _t ≦0.5 GeV/c). The experimental data obtained were analysed on the basis of the Lund model FRITIOF and a quark-gluon model that takes into account colour screening and hadron formation length effects. The experimental data confirm the picture of hadronisation of the leading \(\bar s\) -quark developed in the latter model.     

Search for Θ+(1540) in exclusive proton-induced reaction p + C(N) \to \Theta ^ + \bar \kappa ^0 + C(N) at the energy of 70 GeV

A search for narrow Θ⁺(1540), a candidate for a pentaquark baryon with positive strangeness, has been performed in an exclusive proton-induced reaction $p + C(N) \to \Theta ^ + \bar \kappa ^0 + C(N)$ on carbon nuclei or quasifree nucleons at $E_{beam} = 70GeV(\sqrt s = 11.5GeV)$ studying nK ⁺, pK _S ⁰ , and pK _L ⁰ decay channels of Θ⁺(1540) in four different final states of the $\Theta ^ + \bar K^0 $ system. In order to assess the quality of the identification of the final states with neutron or K _L ⁰ , we reconstructed Λ(1520) → nK _S ⁰ and ? → K _L ⁰ K _S ⁰ decays in the calibration reactions p + C(N) → Λ (1520)K ⁺+C(N) and p+C(N) → p?+C(N). We found no evidence for a narrow pentaquark peak in any of the studied final states and decay channels. Assuming that the production characteristics of the $\Theta ^ + \bar K^0 $ system are not drastically different from those of the Λ(1520)K ⁺ and p? systems, we established upper limits on the cross-section ratios $\sigma (\Theta ^ + \bar K^0 )/\sigma (\Lambda (1520)K^ + ) < 0.02$ and $\sigma (\Theta ^ + \bar K^0 )/\sigma (p\phi ) < 0.15$ at 90% C.L. and a preliminary upper limit for the forward-hemisphere cross section $\sigma (\Theta ^ + \bar K^0 )$ nb/nucleon.     

Observation of a narrowK s 0 K s 0 π+π− state at 1.97 GeV produced inK + p interactions at 32 GeV/c

Evidence is provided for a new resonance in theK _s ⁰ K _s ⁰ π⁺π^? system with a mass of 1.97±0.01 GeV and width 40±20 MeV. It is produced with an inclusive cross section of ～6μb in the beam fragmentation process of 4-prongK ⁺ p interactions with at least 2 associatedV ⁰'s at 32 GeV/c and decays dominantly into theK ^{* ±} (892)K _s ⁰ π^? mode.     

Further study of theE/f 1 (1420) meson in central production

We have studied the reactions \(({{\pi ^ + } \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{\pi ^ + } p}} \right. \kern-0em} p})p \to ({{\pi ^ + } \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{\pi ^ + } p}} \right. \kern-0em} p})(K\bar K\pi )p\) where the \(K\bar K\pi \) system is centrally produced, at 85 GeV/c and 300 GeV/c using the CERN Omega spectrometer. A spin-parity analysis of theK _S ⁰ K ^± π ^? system shows the presence of a strongJ ^PC=1⁺⁺ signal which we identify as theE/f ₁ (1420) meson. We also find evidence for the decayE/f ₁(1420)→K _S ⁰ K _S ⁰ π ⁰ which determines theC-parity of this state to be positive. Alternative explanations of the data have been tested and ruled out. Hence we obtain the quantum numbers of theE/f ₁ (1420) to beI ^G(J^PC)=0⁺(1⁺).     

Inclusive resonance production in 7.3 GeV/c\bar pp interactions

We present results on inclusive baryon and meson resonance production in \(\bar pp\) interactions at 7.3 GeV/c. Total inclusive and semi-inclusive cross sections are given for Δ(1232),∑ ^*(1385), ?⁰,f andK ^*±(892) production. For the meson resonances separation into annihilation and non-annihilation components has been made, the annihilation component being dominant at this energy. We find that the energy dependence of inclusive cross sections for ?⁰ production inpp interactions and \(\bar pp\) non-annihilations shows a type of scaling behaviour previously reported for ?, ψ, ψ′ and ? production inpp interactions.Δ ⁺⁺, ?⁰ andK ^*± production are studied in terms of Feynmanx,y ^* andp _T ² . For the vector mesons we compare they ^* andx dependences with the predictions of simple quark models.     

Two-particle production inK + p interactions at 32 GeV/c

Results are presented on two-particle inclusive production inK ⁺ p interactions at 32 GeV/c. We study thex _1,2=x ₁+x ₂ dependence of invariant structure functions of (ππ)-pairs and compare them to single particle inclusive distributions in the fragmentation regions. Distributions of particles observed at Feynmanx ₂ in association with various “trigger” particles or systems atx ₁ in the same hemisphere are dicussed in terms of the reduced variable \(\tilde x_2 = x_2 /(1 - |x_1 |)\) . We further present absolute production rates and production ratios of π⁺'s and π^?'s associated with π^±,K _s ⁰ , Λ, \(\bar \Lambda \) ,K ^*+ (890), (K _s ⁰ π⁺), and (π⁺ π^?)-triggers, and compare them with qualitative predictions of the quark recombination model. Forwardbackward correlations between (K _s ⁰ π^±), (K _s ⁰ ,p), (Λ, π^?), \((\bar \Lambda \pi ^ \pm )\) , and (p, π^?) pairs are also discussed.     

Inclusive production ofK *(892) andΣ(1385) in\bar p p interactions at 3.6 GeV/c and a test of factorization hypothesis

We present a study of the inclusive production ofK ^*(892) and ∑^t+-(1385)+cc at 3.6 GeV/c from \(\bar p\) p interactions. The sensitivity of the exposure is 35.4 events/μb. Longitudinal and transverse momentum distributions are presented. The indirect production ofK _s ⁰ from parentK ^* and that of Λ's from parent Σ(1385) are studied. The shape of thex distribution of Λ's for \(p\xrightarrow{{\bar p}}\Lambda \) are calculated from \(p\xrightarrow{p}\Lambda \) and \(p\xrightarrow{{\pi ^ - }}\Lambda \) and compared with the experimental distributions. The difference of antiparticle production cross-section ofK _s ⁰ in the central region is compared with the expectation from Mueller-Regge formalism.