A statistical model analysis of the rapidity distribution of hadrons

Using the statistical model of multiparticle production by Chou, Yang, and Yen, which looks similar to the thermal model and is known to account for the single particle distributions in e+ e- collisions, we fit the rapidity distributions of pions and kaons measured in Pb+Pb collisions by the NA49 collaboration. This model fits the rapidity data very well. Thus, the success of thermal models in fitting the rapidity distributions does not necessarily mean that the system is thermalized.