Measurement of the forward-backward asymmetry of $\Lambda$ and $\bar{\Lambda}$ production in $p \bar{p}$ collisions

Abstract

We study $\Lambda$ and $\bar{\Lambda}$ production asymmetries in $p \bar{p} \rightarrow \Lambda (\bar{\Lambda}) X$, $p \bar{p} \rightarrow J/\psi \Lambda (\bar{\Lambda}) X$, and $p \bar{p} \rightarrow \mu^\pm \Lambda (\bar{\Lambda}) X$ events recorded by the D0 detector at the Fermilab Tevatron collider at $\sqrt{s} = 1.96$ TeV. We find an excess of $\Lambda$'s ($\bar{\Lambda}$'s) produced in the proton (antiproton) direction. This forward-backward asymmetry is measured as a function of rapidity. We confirm that the $\bar{\Lambda}/\Lambda$ production ratio, measured by several experiments with various targets and a wide range of energies, is a universal function of "rapidity loss", i.e., the rapidity difference of the beam proton and the lambda.