Photon induced Λ(1520) production and the role of the K* exchange

Abstract

We study the photon induced Λ(1520) production in the effective Lagrangian method near threshold, EγLAB≤2GeV, and in the quark-gluon string model at higher energies 3GeV≤EγLAB≤5GeV. In particular, we study the role of the K* exchange for the production of Λ(1520) within the SU(6) Weinberg-Tomozowa chiral unitary model proposed by García-Recio, Nieves, and Salcedo. The coupling of the Λ(1520) resonance to the NK̄* pair, which is dynamically generated, turns out to be relatively small and, thus, the K exchange mechanism dominates the reaction. In the higher energy region, where experimental data are available, the quark-gluon string mechanism with the K Regge trajectory reproduces both the energy and the angular distribution dependences of the Λ(1520) photoproduction reaction. © 2008 The American Physical Society.