"Polarization Effects in Strangeness and Heavy-Flavor Production"
A. Bravar(a), N. Akchurin(b) and A. Penzo(c)
(a) Department of Physics, University of Mainz, Germany
(b) Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Iowa, USA
(c) INFN-Trieste, Department of Physics, University of Trieste, Italy
A sizable polarization of hyperons produced at high energy has
been known for a long time and has been interpreted with various models
in terms of constituent spin. New results on hyperon production measured
recently at Fermilab with polarized beams indicate that the mechanisms of
spin dependence are more complex than those considered in current models
and revive interest in polarization effects in strangeness and heavy-flavor
production, from charm to top.
A survey of the present experimental status of the subject is
presented, in comparison with current model predictions and new approaches
to further test the parton mechanisms of polarization dependence in
strangeness and heavy-flavor production are discussed.