Measurements of $\Xi^{-}$ and $\overline{\Xi}^{+}$ production in proton-proton interactions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 17.3 GeV in the NA61/SHINE experiment

TL;DR

This study measures the production rates and spectra of $\\Xi^{-}$ and $\overline{\Xi}^{+}$ hyperons in proton-proton collisions at 17.3 GeV, providing data to compare with models and assess strangeness enhancement in heavy-ion collisions.

Contribution

It provides detailed measurements of hyperon production in p+p interactions at 17.3 GeV, including spectra and mean multiplicities, and compares results with transport models.

Findings

Measured hyperon spectra in p+p collisions at 17.3 GeV.

Quantified strangeness enhancement in A+A collisions.

Compared experimental data with transport model predictions.

Abstract

The production of $\Xi(1321)^{-}$ and $\overline{\Xi}(1321)^{+}$ hyperons in inelastic p+p interactions is studied in a fixed target experiment at a beam momentum of 158 GeV/textit{c}. Double differential distributions in rapidity y and transverse momentum $p_{T}$ are obtained from a sample of 33M inelastic events. They allow to extrapolate the spectra to full phase space and to determine the mean multiplicity of both $\Xi^{-}$ and $\overline{\Xi}^{+}$. The rapidity and transverse momentum spectra are compared to transport model predictions. The $\Xi^{-}$ mean multiplicity in inelastic p+p interactions at 158~\GeVc is used to quantify the strangeness enhancement in A+A collisions at the same centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair.