Forward--Backward Multiplicity Correlations at the LHC from Independent Sources

Abstract

It is argued that the superposition approach, where partons are independently emitted from longitudinally extended sources in the early stage, is fully compatible with the experimental results for the forward-backward multiplicity correlations in Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=2.76 \textrm{ TeV}$. The pertinent correlation analysis is based on the PhD Thesis of Ref. [1], which includes an unpublished analysis of data taken by the ALICE Collaboration. Our calculations show that in the experimentally covered pseudorapidity range $\Delta \eta=1.2$, the initial sources in the backward and forward bins are maximally correlated, which complies to the string-like interpretation of the underlying early-stage production mechanism.