Properties ofK*(890)andK*(1400)Produced inK−pInteractions at 4.1 and 5.5 GeV/c

The results presented in this paper were obtained from an analysis of $K^{-}p$ interactions in the 30-in. hydrogen bubble chamber at the Argonne ZGS using incident $K^{-}$ beams of momenta 4.1 and 5.5 GeV/c. The $\overline{K}\pi N$ final states were studied extensively; the most prominent feature of these is production of the $K^{*}\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}$ and $K^{*}\mathrm{}\left(1400\right)\mathrm{}$ resonances. The ${\overline{K}}^0{\pi }^{-}{\pi }^{+}n$ final state was used to measure the branching ratio of the decay of the $K^{*}\mathrm{}\left(1400\right)\mathrm{}$ into $K^{*}\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}\pi$ and $K\rho$. Evidence for quasi-two-body production of $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^{-}$ and $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(1400\right)\mathrm{}}^{-}$ is presented both from the two-prong events in which the positive track was identified as a proton, and from events where the ${\overline{K}}^0$ decay was observed. For final states with a missing neutron, a study of the missing-mass distributions proved that the kinematical fits to $K^{-}{\pi }^{+}n$ and ${\overline{K}}^0{\pi }^{-}{\pi }^{+}n$ final states could be used with confidence to study $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^0$ and $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(1400\right)\mathrm{}}^0$ production. The $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^{0,-}$ production angular distribution and decay correlations are analyzed in the framework of the absorptive peripheral model. Vector exchange dominates the $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^{-}$ production, whereas $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^0$ is formed mainly via pseudoscalar exchange. An absorptive-peripheral-model calculation using the vector-meson coupling strengths to the nucleon given by relativistic $\mathrm{SU}\left(6\right)\mathrm{}$ gives a good fit to the $K^{*}{\mathrm{}\left(890\right)\mathrm{}}^{0,-}$ density-matrix elements as a function of production angle, and gives a reasonable fit to the differential cross section. For...