Isolating the Λ(1405) in lattice QCD.

The odd-parity ground state of the Λ baryon lies surprisingly low in mass. At 1405 MeV, it lies lower than the odd-parity ground-state nucleon, even though it has a valence strange quark. Using the PACS-CS (2+1)-flavor full-QCD ensembles, we employ a variational analysis using source and sink smearing to isolate this elusive state. For the first time we reproduce the correct level ordering with respect to nearby scattering thresholds. With a partially quenched strange quark to produce the appropriate kaon mass, we find a low-lying, odd-parity mass trend consistent with the experimental value.