Inclusive production of Lambda in the proton fragmentation region from K/sup -/p to Lambda X at 42 GeV/c

A study of Lambda production has been made for the process p to Lambda from K/sup -/p interactions at 4.2 GeV/c. The total Lambda production cross-section is (4.5+or-0.2) mb and the cross-section in which Lambda is associated with KK in the final state is found to be (0.44+or-0.03) mb. A study of the polarization is made for the off-mass-shell strangeness annihilations KK to pions and strangeness nonannihilations KK to KK+pions; the polarization, when plotted as a function of x, p/sub T/ and (recoiling mass)/sup 2/, exhibits differences between the two processes. The polarization observed in the strangeness nonannihilation process shows identical behaviour to that in pp reactions. An attempt has been made to understand the behaviour of the polarized and the unpolarized cross-sections as a function of (recoiling mass)/sup 2/ in the triple-Regge framework. (18 refs)