Hyperon and negative particle production at central rapidity in proton-beryllium interactions at 158 GeV/c

Abstract

A study of the strangeness enhancement in lead-lead collisions with respect to proton-induced reactions is being carried out at the CERN SPS by the WA97 experiment: up to now, data from proton-lead collisions have been used as a reference sample. In this paper we report on a study of particle production in proton-beryllium collisions. These collisions are expected to constitute a better reference sample than p-Pb, because of the lighter target. The analysis of hyperon and negative particle production is presented and the results are compared with those previously obtained from Pb-Pb and p-Pb collisions. (6 refs)