Measurement of the production cross section of prompt Ξ c 0 $$ {\Xi}_{\mathrm{c}}^0 $$ baryons at midrapidity in pp collisions at s $$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 5.02 TeV

Abstract The transverse momentum (p T) differential cross section of the charm-strange baryon Ξ c 0 $$ {\Xi}_{\mathrm{c}}^0 $$ is measured at midrapidity (|y| < 0.5) via its semileptonic decay into e+Ξ − ν e in pp collisions at s $$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 5.02 TeV with the ALICE detector at the LHC. The ratio of the p T-differential Ξ c 0 $$ {\Xi}_{\mathrm{c}}^0 $$ -baryon and D0-meson production cross sections is also reported. The measurements are compared with simulations with different tunes of the PYTHIA 8 event generator, with predictions from a statistical hadronisation model (SHM) with a largely augmented set of charm-baryon states beyond the current lists of the Particle Data Group, and with models including hadronisation via quark coalescence. The p T-integrated cross section of prompt Ξ c 0 $$ {\Xi}_{\mathrm{c}}^0 $$ -baryon production at midrapidity is also reported, which is used to calculate the baryon-to-meson ratio Ξ c 0 $$ {\Xi}_{\mathrm{c}}^0 $$ /D0 = 0.20 ± 0.04 stat . − 0.07 + 0.08 $$ {\left(\mathrm{stat}.\right)}_{-0.07}^{+0.08} $$ (syst.). These results provide an additional indication of a modification of the charm fragmentation from e+e − and e − p collisions to pp collisions.