Spin effects in $p\bar p$ interaction and their possible use to polarize antiproton beams

Abstract

Low energy $p\bar p$ interaction is considered taking into account the polarization of both particles. The corresponding cross sections are calculated using the Paris nucleon-antinucleon optical potential. Then they are applied to the analysis of the polarization buildup which is due to the interaction of stored antiprotons with polarized protons of a hydrogen target. It is shown that, at realistic parameters of a storage ring and a target, the filtering mechanism provides a noticeable polarization in a time comparable with the beam lifetime.