Phenomenological characteristics of absorption in charge- and hypercharge-exchange reactions

The author tries to explain in a unique framework charge- and hypercharge-exchange reactions above 3 GeV/c. His approach is based on exchange degenerate and SU(3) symmetric Regge poles to which absorption corrections are applied. In the absence of a firm theoretical basis for the corrections he adopts the approach of fixing the Regge poles through theoretical and phenomenological considerations; he then determines what kind of absorption he should apply. At intermediate energy (around 5 GeV/c) his results indicate complete absorption of the s-wave amplitude. Of the two terms 1 and e /sup -i pi alpha / of the Regge signature factor, the latter should be more strongly absorbed. This effect may explain especially the breaking of line-reversal symmetry for hypercharge-exchange reactions, pi /sup -/p to pi /sup 0/n polarization data, and the difference of peripherality of rho - omega and A/sub 2/-f/sub 0/ contributions. In addition, K-exchange in pp to Lambda Lambda has been studied. (50 refs).