Analysis of Lambda-Proton Elastic Scattering in CLAS

Lambda-Proton elastic scattering offers multiple insights on problems in nuclear physics. SU(3)-flavor symmetry implies a close agreement between the Lambda-proton and proton-proton scattering cross sections. The Lambda-Proton elastic scattering cross section can also illuminate the structure of neutron stars. A data-mining project was started using CLAS data taken to look for exotic quark matter with a high-energy photon beam on a long liquid hydrogen target. A Lambda produced in a process such as gamma p-->K+ Lambda can interact with a second proton inside the target before either decaying or leaving the target. The good angular acceptance and momentum resolution of CLAS make it well-suited for this type of analysis, even though it was not designed for a measurement such as this. The scattered Lambda can be found in the pi- proton invariant mass. The four-vector of the initial Lambda is then reconstructed in the process Xp-->Lambda p, which shows a strong peak at the Lambda mass with roughly twice the number of events as the existing world data sample. This observation opens up the possibility of other measurements using secondary beams of short-lived particles. This talk will discuss the current status of the analysis, and our plans for future work on this project.