EFFECTIVE KAON MASS IN BARYONIC MATTER AND KAON CONDENSATION

The effective kaon mass m(K) in dense baryonic matter is calculated b ased on PCAC, current algebra and the Weinberg smoothness hypothesis. The off-shell behavior of the K-N scattering amplitudes is treated con sistently with PCAC, and the effects of the subthreshold K-N resonance s are also included. The m(K) is found to depend crucially on the K-N sigma term, SIGMA(KN). Since the current estimates of SIGMA(KN) are v ery uncertain, we discuss various scenarios treating SIGMA(KN) as an i nput parameter; for certain values of SIGMA(KN) a collective mode of a hyperon-particle-nucleon-hole state appears at high densities, possib ly leading to kaon condensation.