The total cross section of the reaction pp->ppK+K- has been measured at excess energies Q=10 MeV and 28 MeV with the magnetic spectrometer COSY-11. The new data show a significant enhancement of the total cross section compared to pure phase space expectations or calculations within a one boson exchange model. In addition, we present invariant mass spectra of two particle subsystems. While the K+K- system is rather constant for different invariant masses, there is an enhancement in the pK- system towards lower masses which could at least be partially connected to the influence of the Lambda(1405) resonance.
The experimental setup and detection technique of the COSY-11 installation, an internal experimental facility at the cooler synchrotron and storage ring COSY Jülich, are described. The detection system has been designed for meson production studies with full geometrical acceptance close to threshold. Preliminary results of first measurements are presented, emphasis is put on strangeness production in the reactions pp → ppK + K − and pp → pK + Λ .
We present inclusive ¶ and K *0 (892) cross sections and Feynman x -spectra in K + p collisions at 250 GeV/ c . In the K + fragmentation region, x > 0.2, the ratio of ¶ to K *0 (892) is used to estimate the strangeness suppression factor λ , with the result γ =0.17 ± 0.02 (stat ± 0.01 (syst). We see no evidence for an energy dependence of λ in the CM energy range 7.8 ≤ s ≤21.7 GeV.
Sigma+ hyperon production was measured at the COSY-11 spectrometer via the p p --> n K+ Sigma+ reaction at excess energies of Q = 13 MeV and Q = 60 MeV. These measurements continue systematic hyperon production studies via the p p --> p K+ Lambda/Sigma0 reactions where a strong decrease of the cross section ratio close-to-threshold was observed. In order to verify models developed for the description of the Lambda and Sigma0 production we have performed the measurement on the Sigma+ hyperon and found unexpectedly that the total cross section is by more than one order of magnitude larger than predicted by all anticipated models. After the reconstruction of the kaon and neutron four momenta, the Sigma+ is identified via the missing mass technique. Details of the method and the measurement will be given and discussed in view of theoretical models.
The reaction pp → K + Λp was measured exclusively at the cooler synchrotron COSY at beam momenta of p Beam = 2.50 GeV/c and p Beam = 2.75 GeV/c using the TOF detector. Angular and momentum distributions were obtained for the full phase space of the reaction products. Total cross sections were extracted to be (2.7 ± 0.3) μ b and (12.0 ± 0.4) μ b, respectively. The polarization of the Λ -hyperon was determined as a function of its transversal momentum and was found to be negative for transverse momentum transfers of p T ≥ 0.3 GeV/c. The results together with existing data are compared with phenomenological parametrizations and model calculations on the basis of meson exchange.
Threshold measurements of the associated strangeness production reactions pp --> p K(+) Lambda and pp --> p K(+) Sigma(0) are presented. Although slight differences in the shapes of the excitation functions are observed, the most remarkable feature of the data is that at the same excess energy the total cross section for the Sigma(0) production appears to be about a factor of 28 smaller than the one for the Lambda particle. It is concluded that strong Sigma(0)-p final state interactions, and in particular the Sigma-N --> Lambda-p conversion reaction, are the likely cause of the depletion for the yield in the Sigma signal. This hypothesis is in line with other experimental evidence in the literature.
A search for baryonia with negative and positive strangeness decaying respectively into\(\Lambda+ \bar p + pions\) and\(\bar \Lambda+ p + pions\) has been carried out in a neutron beam with a mean momentum of ≅40 GeV/c in an experiment performed at the Serpukhov accelerator. There is a strong indication of the existence of these baryonia. The following four charge states are observed for negative and positive strangeness: neutral, negative, positive and doubly charged. Their mean mass is 3055±25 MeV/c2 and the width Γ≦36±15 MeV/c2. The data show that the isotopic spin of the baryonia is ≧3/2. The baryonia production cross sections in the acceptable kinematic regionXF≧0.2 andPT≦1 GeV/c times the branching ratios of the observed decays are of the order of 1 μb per nucleon.
Production of Λ, Λ , and K s 0 has been measured for a wide range of event multiplicity in S+Pb reactions at 200 GeV/c per nucleon. The production of Λ is shown to increase with multiplicity faster than expected from a superposition of p+p collisions. The effect is seen for low multiplicity (below 100 negative particles).
Measurements of the production inp-BeO collisions of charged baryons and antibaryons with strangeness between −3 and +3 at\(\sqrt s= 21.2GeV\)x=0.48, andpT=600MeV/c are reported. The experimental results can be interpreted within the framework of a simple proton fragmentation-recombination model.
From the measurements of the inclusive production ratios between π - , K - and p̄ at Feynman x = 0 in 360 GeV/ c pp interactions and using the predictions of the Lund fragmentation model, we determine the strangeness and diquark suppression factors and find γ s , l = 0.28 ± 0.03 and γ D , l = 0.063 ± 0.011 .
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