Partial waves in the K+p interaction between 1.2 and 1.7 GeV/c

Abstract A simultaneous partial-wave analysis of the three final states K + p, K ∗ (892)N and KΔ(1236) is attempted using inelastic data with large statistics at 1.21, 1.29, 1.38 and 1.69 GeV/ c as well as existing data on the elastic reaction. The constraint of unitarity, which is almost saturated by these reactions, allows one to determine the size and relative phases of the dominant partial waves and to give some limits on the others. Their variation with energy is discussed, as well as the consistency of the different sets of elastic phase shifts with the inelastic data. We also compare the predictions of the duality hypothesis with the data.