Transport analysis of K+ production in proton-nucleus reactions.

The production of K+-mesons in proton-nucleus collisions from 1.0 to 2.3 GeV is analyzed with respect to one-step nucleon-nucleon (NN?NYK+) and two-step ?-nucleon (?N?K+ YN) or pion-nucleon (pN?K+ Y) production channels on the basis of a coupled-channel (CBUU) transport approach including the kaon final-state-interactions (FSI). Momentum-dependent potentials for the nucleon, hyperon and kaon in the final state are included as well as K+ elastic rescattering in the target nucleus. The transport calculations are compared to the experimental K+ spectra taken at COSY-Jülich. Our systematic analysis of K+ spectra from12C,63Cu,107Ag and197Au targets as well as their momentum differential ratios gives a repulsive K+ potential of 20±5 MeV at normal nuclear matter density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]