Azimuthal correlations of hadrons in a partonic/hadronic transport model

Abstract

By using a multi‐phase transport (AMPT) model with both partonic and hadronic interactions, di‐hadron and three‐particle azimuthal correlations between trigger particles and associated scattering particles in Au + Au collisions at sNN = 200 GeV have been studied by the mixing‐event technique. A Mach‐like structure has been observed in the di‐hadron and three‐particle correlation functions in central collisions. By comparing the scenarios with and without parton cascade and/or hadronic rescattering, it is shown that both partonic and hadronic dynamical mechanisms contribute to the Mach‐like structure of the scattered particle azimuthal correlations. However, only hadronic rescattering is unable to reproduce experimental amplitude of Mach‐like cone on away‐side, instead the parton cascade process is essential to describe experimental amplitude of Mach‐like cone on away‐side.