We have measured the induced polarization of the ${\Lambda}(1116)$ in the
reaction $ep\rightarrow e'K^+{\Lambda}$, detecting the scattered $e'$ and $K^+$
in the final state along with the proton from the decay $\Lambda\rightarrow
p\pi^-$.The present study used the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS),
which allowed for a large kinematic acceptance in invariant energy $W$
($1.6\leq W \leq 2.7$ GeV) and covered the full range of the kaon production
angle at an average momentum transfer $Q^2=1.90$ GeV$^2$.In this experiment a
5.50 GeV electron beam was incident upon an unpolarized liquid-hydrogen target.
We have mapped out the $W$ and kaon production angle dependencies of the
induced polarization and found striking differences from photoproduction data
over most of the kinematic range studied. However, we also found that the
induced polarization is essentially $Q^2$ independent in our kinematic domain,
suggesting that somewhere below the $Q^2$ covered here there must be a strong
$Q^2$ dependence. Along with previously published photo- and electroproduction
cross sections and polarization observables, these data are needed for the
development of models, such as effective field theories, and as input to
coupled-channel analyses that can provide evidence of previously unobserved
$s$-channel resonances.
