Microscopic K +-nucleus optical potential and calculations of differential elastic-scattering cross sections and total reaction cross sections

Abstract

The differential elastic-scattering cross sections and the total reaction cross sections for the interaction of K+ mesons with 12C and 40Ca nuclei at beam momenta of 0.635, 0.715, and 0.8 GeV/c are calculated. The microscopic optical potential derived in the high-energy approximation is used in these calculations. It is determined by the amplitude for kaon-nucleon scattering and the density distribution of pointlike nucleons of the target nucleus. In the high-energy approximation, the Klein-Gordon-Fock equation reduces to the form of the Schrodinger equation. It is shown that small distinctions between the reduction methods do not lead to significant changes in differential elastic-scattering cross sections, but the effects of relativization as such are quite large. Good agreement with experimental data on elastic K+A scattering is attained. The total reaction cross sections can be described upon adding, to the volume potential, a term that takes the form of its derivative and which has a maximum at the periphery, its contribution being fitted to experimental data.