Neutral-Strange-Particle Production in 205-GeVppInteractions

Abstract

A bubble-chamber study of proton-proton interactions at 205 GeV yielded 66 $K^0$'s, 28 $\Lambda$'s, and 2 $\Lambda$'s produced in the backward c.m. hemisphere. The cross sections for $p+p\to \left(\frac{\Lambda }{{\Sigma }^0}\right)$ + anything and $p+p\to \left(\frac{K^0}{{\overline{K}}^0}\right)$ + anything are 3.2±0.6 and 12.9±1.7 mb, respectively. Comparison of the invariant cross section with lower-energy data shows that ($\frac{\Lambda }{{\Sigma }^0}$) production is consistent with approximate scaling behavior above 28 GeV, whereas the ($\frac{K^0}{{\overline{K}}^0}$) invariant cross section has increased considerably between 28 and 205 GeV.