Production and decay properties of the D(1285) meson in K−p interactions at 4.2 GeV/c

Abstract We have studied the production and decay of the D(1285) meson in the reaction K − p→ Λ D at an incident K − momentum of 4.2 GeV/ c . The cross section for this reaction is 11 ± 3 μ b and the branching ratios D→ KK π /D → ηππ and D → 4 π /D → ηππ are found to be 0.42 ± 0.15 and 0.7 ± 0.5, respectively. The proportion of D → ηπ + π − going through the intermediate δ ± π ∓ states is 0.72 ± 0.15. Forward and backward exchange mechanisms are found to contribute in the ratio 3 : 2.