Strangeness photoproduction at extremely forward angles at the BGO-OD experiment

Abstract

The BGO-OD experiment at the ELSA accelerator facility uses an energy tagged bremstrahlung photon beam to investigate the internal structure of the nucleon. The setup consists of a highly segmented BGO calorimeter surrounding the target, with a particle tracking magnetic spectrometer at forward angles. BGO-OD is ideal for investigating low momentum transfer processes due to the acceptance and high momentum resolution at forward angles. This enables the investigation of strangeness photoproduction where $t$-channel exchange mechanisms play a dominant role. A detailed understanding of this low-momentum transfer region is also crucial for constraints in hypernuclei electroproduction, and sensitive to any extended, molecular-like interactions that may contribute to reaction mechanisms. Progress in the study of $K^+\Lambda$(1405) differential cross sections and line shapes, $K^0$ photoproduction, and differential cross section measurements for $K^+\Lambda$ and $K^+\Sigma^0$ photoproduction at extremely forward angles is presented. Opportunities for hypernuclei studies are also discussed.