Measurement of Λ⁰-hyperon spin-spin correlations in $p+p$ collisions at √s = 200 and 510\,GeV by the STAR experiment

About 50 years ago, it was discovered that Λ⁰ hyperons are produced polarized in collisions of unpolarized protons on beryllium. Despite enormous experimental and theoretical efforts, the origin of this polarization remains inconclusive to date. The Λ⁰ polarization has also been observed in various collision systems, from e⁺+e⁻ to heavy-ion collisions. A recently proposed technique for the investigation of the Λ⁰ hyperon polarization is a measurement of Λ⁰Λ̄⁰, Λ⁰Λ⁰, and Λ̄⁰Λ̄⁰ spin-spin correlations. This technique is expected to help understand if the polarization is generated at early stages of the collisions, e.g. from initial state parton spin correlation, or if it is a final state effect originating from hadronization. In these proceedings, we present a status of the first measurement utilizing this new experimental method in p+p collisions at √s = 200\,GeV by the STAR experiment. The Λ⁰ and Λ̄⁰ candidates are reconstructed at mid-rapidity ($|y| < 1$) and in two transverse momentum (pT) bins which allows us to extract the Λ⁰-hyperon spin-spin correlations for various pT combinations of hyperons in Λ⁰Λ̄⁰, Λ⁰Λ⁰, and Λ̄⁰Λ̄⁰ pairs. This measurement will provide new insight into Λ⁰ hyperon spin polarization in p+p collisions at RHIC energies.