Speaker
Description
We present the first determination of the scattering parameters of $\Lambda K$ pairs ($\Lambda K^+$, $\Lambda K^-$, and $\Lambda K^0_{\rm S}$) associated with strong final state interactions. The parameters are extracted from measured femtoscopic $\Lambda K$ correlation functions in Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV, with the widely used Lednicky and Lyuboshitz model. The THERMINATOR 2 event generator is used to characterize the non-femtoscopic backgrounds, which arise from collective effects and feed-down from resonances. A striking difference between the $\Lambda K^+$ and $\Lambda K^-$ correlation functions is observed for pairs with low relative momenta. As a consequence, the $\Lambda K^+$ system exhibits a negative real component of the scattering parameter ($\Re f_0$), while that of the $\Lambda K^-$ system is positive. These observations might arise from different quark-antiquark interactions between the hadron pairs (${\rm s\bar{s}}$ in $\Lambda K^+$ and ${\rm u\bar{u}}$ in $\Lambda K^-$), or from the different net strangeness in each system (S = 0 for $\Lambda K^+$, and S = −2 for $\Lambda K^-$). To investigate this further, we will present the femtoscopic correlation functions of $\Xi^−K^\pm$ pairs.
| Track | Strangeness and Light Flavour |
|---|---|
| Collaboration name | ALICE Collaboration |
