Λ0-Nucleon Interaction

A study of the ${\Lambda }^0-p$ or ${\Lambda }^0-n$ force is of particular interest because the ${\Lambda }^0$-nucleon two-body force need not be related to the potential effective in binding hyperfragments. Thus, an exchange of a single pion between the ${\Lambda }^0$ and the nucleon is forbidden only in the two-body interaction. It is pointed out that the final-state interaction in the production of a ${\Lambda }^0$ and nucleon is the only effective means of studying this force that seems feasible at present. The effect of the ${\Lambda }^0$-nucleon interaction on the spectrum of $K$ mesons produced in nucleon-nucleon and pion-deuteron collisions is investigated. It is pointed out that these experiments can also be used to determine whether the ${}_{\Lambda }{}^{}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{H}_{}^2{}_{}{}^{}$ is bound.