Proton polarization in inclusive processes at Fermilab energies

In recent years the interest in the study of polarization phenomena has increased as the importance of the spin dependent forces in strong interaction physics at high energies has become apparent. One method of studying polarization phenomena is to determine the polarization of a particle in an inclusive process. In particular, we have investigated the process po → px, where x represents any number of observed final state particles. The polarization of the final state proton produced by both hydrogen and carbon targets in this inclusive process was studied at the Internal Target Area of Fermi National Accelerator using the Internal Target Area Spectrometer and a polarimeter built by the high energy group at Indiana. The polarization was determined by rescattering the proton in a secondary target, a 5 cm carbon block, and measuring the asymmetry in the secondary scattering distribution. In particular, this measurement determined the dependence on the kinematic variables, p/sub T/, the component of the momentum vector perpendicular to the initial direction of the beam proton, and k/sub F/, the ratio of the component of the momentum vector along the direction of the beam proton in the center of mass frame to the maximum momentum in the center of mass reference frame. In the appropriate kinematic region, a comparison to the Triple Regge model of strong interactions was made and found to be consistent with our data within statistical errors. The difference in the polarization produced on hydrogen and carbon targets at the same kinematic points indicates that two different interaction processes are involved. An intuitive model, which proposes a two step interaction process in the carbon, appears to explain the difference in the polarization