In the high-energy polarized p+p collisions, a spin-involved diffractive particle production mechanism can be understood by measuring transverse single-spin asymmetries AN of forward particles that are produced at pseudorapidity larger than 6.
Since AN of forward neutron had only been studied in a narrow transverse momentum range of pT<0.4~GeV/c, the RHICf Collaboration has extended the previous measurements up to 1.0~GeV/c at √s=510~GeV to study the kinematic dependence of the neutron AN in more detail.
The resulting ANs reach a plateau in the low longitudinal momentum fraction xF range, but explicitly increase in magnitude with pT in the high xF range.
The ANs show little xF dependence in the low pT range.
A clear xF dependence is observed for higher pT range in the intermediate xF region.
The results are consistent with the previous measurements at √s=200~GeV, which suggests no √s dependence of the neutron AN.
A theoretical model based on π and a1 exchange between two protons could reproduce
the current results only in a limited kinematic region.
An additional mechanism is necessary to understand the measured neutron ANs over the whole kinematic region.
