Abstract

SU(3) symmetry relations between the octet baryons are introduced in order to connect both the unpolarized and polarized quark distributions of the octet baryons with those of thenucleon. Two different parametrizations of the nucleon quark distributions are used. A new scenario of quark flavor and spin structure of the A ? is found and compared with two other models: a perturbative QCD based analysis and a quark diquark model. The u and d quarks inside the ? are predicted to be positively polarized at a large Bjorken variable x in the new scenario. By using an approximate relation connecting the quark fragmentation functions with the quark distributions, the hadron polarizations of the octet baryons in e+e- annihilation,.polarized charged lepton deep-inelastic scattering (DIS) processes, aqd neutrino (antineutrino) DIS processes are predicted. The predictions for ? polarizations in several processes are compatible with the available data at a large fragmentation momentum fraction z, and support the prediction of positively polarized u and d quarks inside the ? at large x. Predictions for Drell-Yan processes from ?± and ?- beams on an isoscalar target are also given and discussed. © 2002 The American Physical Society.