Central Collisions Research Articles

Excitation Function of Freeze-Out Parameters in Symmetric Nucleus–Nucleus and Proton–Proton Collisions at the Same Collision Energy

We analyze the transverse momentum (pT) spectra of π+, π−, K+, K−, p, p¯, Λ, Λ¯, Ξ, Ξ¯, Ω−, Ω¯+ or Ω−+Ω¯+ in different centrality intervals in gold–gold (Au–Au) and lead–lead (Pb–Pb) symmetric collisions at 200 GeV and 2.76 TeV, respectively, by Tsallis–Pareto-type function. Proton–proton collisions at the same centre of mass energies are also analyzed for these particles to compare the results obtained from these systems. The present work extracts the effective temperature T, non-extensivity parameter (q), the mean transverse momentum spectra (⟨pT⟩), the multiplicity parameter (N0), kinetic freeze-out temperature (T0) and transverse flow velocity (βT). We reported a plateau structure of pT, T, T0, βT, pT and q in central collisions. Beyond the plateau region, the excitation function of all the above parameters decreases towards the periphery, except q, which has a reverse trend. The multiplicity parameter is also extracted, which is found to be decreasing towards the periphery from the central collisions. In addition, we observed that the excitation function of pp collisions is nearly the same to that of the most peripheral symmetric nucleus–nucleus collisions at the same colliding energy. Throughout the analyses, the same multiplicity parameters for particles and their antiparticles have been reported, which show the symmetric production of particles and their antiparticles.

Estimation of collision centrality in terms of the number of participating nucleons in heavy-ion collisions using deep learning

Estimation of collision centrality in terms of the number of participating nucleons in heavy-ion collisions using deep learning

First Measurement of Antideuteron Number Fluctuations at Energies Available at the Large Hadron Collider.

The first measurement of event-by-event antideuteron number fluctuations in high energy heavy-ion collisions is presented. The measurements are carried out at midrapidity (|η|<0.8) as a function of collision centrality in Pb-Pb collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02 TeV using the ALICE detector. A significant negative correlation between the produced antiprotons and antideuterons is observed in all collision centralities. The results are compared with a state-of-the-art coalescence calculation. While it describes the ratio of higher order cumulants of the antideuteron multiplicity distribution, it fails to describe quantitatively the magnitude of the correlation between antiproton and antideuteron production. On the other hand, thermal-statistical model calculations describe all the measured observables within uncertainties only for correlation volumes that are different with respect to those describing proton yields and a similar measurement of net-proton number fluctuations.

{{J}/psi } and {{D}} ^0 production in sqrt{s_{scriptscriptstyle text {NN}}} =68.5,text {GeV} PbNe collisions

The first measurement of {{J}/psi } and {{D}} ^0 production in PbNe collisions by the LHCb experiment in its fixed-target configuration is reported. The production of {{J}/psi } and {{D}} ^0 mesons is studied with a beam of lead ions with an energy of 2.5,text {TeV} per nucleon colliding on gaseous neon targets at rest, corresponding to a nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energy of sqrt{s_{scriptscriptstyle text {NN}}} =68.5,text {GeV} . The {{J}/psi }/{{D}} ^0 production cross-section ratio is studied as a function of rapidity, transverse momentum and collision centrality. These data are compared with measurements from ptext {Ne} collisions at the same energy and show no difference in the observed {{J}/psi } suppression trend when comparing ptext {Ne} and PbNe peripheral collisions with PbNe central collisions.

Charged-hadron production in pp, p+Pb, Pb+Pb, and Xe+Xe collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

This paper presents measurements of charged-hadron spectra obtained in pp, p+Pb, and Pb+Pb collisions at sqrt{s} or sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV, and in Xe+Xe collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.44 TeV. The data recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC have total integrated luminosities of 25 pb−1, 28 nb−1, 0.50 nb−1, and 3 μb−1, respectively. The nuclear modification factors RpPb and RAA are obtained by comparing the spectra in heavy-ion and pp collisions in a wide range of charged-particle transverse momenta and pseudorapidity. The nuclear modification factor RpPb shows a moderate enhancement above unity with a maximum at pT ≈ 3 GeV; the enhancement is stronger in the Pb-going direction. The nuclear modification factors in both Pb+Pb and Xe+Xe collisions feature a significant, centrality-dependent suppression. They show a similar distinct pT-dependence with a local maximum at pT ≈ 2 GeV and a local minimum at pT ≈ 7 GeV. This dependence is more distinguishable in more central collisions. No significant |η|-dependence is found. A comprehensive comparison with several theoretical predictions is also provided. They typically describe RAA better in central collisions and in the pT range from about 10 to 100 GeV.

Centrality-Dependent Lévy HBT Analysis in sNN=5.02 TeV PbPb Collisions at CMS

The measurement of two-particle Bose–Einstein momentum correlation functions are presented using sNN=5.02 TeV PbPb collision data, recorded by the CMS experiment in 2018. The measured correlation functions are discussed in terms of Lévy-type source distributions. The Lévy source parameters are extracted as functions of transverse mass and collision centrality. These source parameters include the correlation strength λ, the Lévy stability index α, and the Lévy scale parameter R. The source shape, characterized by α, is found to be neither Gaussian nor Cauchy. A hydrodynamic-like scaling of R is also observed.

Structure of the Medium Formed in Heavy Ion Collisions

We investigate the structure of the medium formed in heavy ion collisions using three different models: the Color String Percolation Model (CSPM), the Core–Shell-Color String Percolation Model (CSCSPM), and the Color Glass Condensate (CGC) framework. We analyze the radial distribution function of the transverse representation of color flux tubes in each model to determine the medium’s structure. Our results indicate that the CSPM behaves as an ideal gas, while the CSCSPM exhibits a structural phase transition from a gas-like to a liquid-like structure. Additionally, our analysis of the CGC framework suggests that it produces systems that behave like non-ideal gases for AuAu central collisions at RHIC energies and liquid-like structures for PbPb central collisions at LHC energies.

Light (anti)nuclei production in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=5.02 TeV

The measurement of the production of deuterons, tritons and He3 and their antiparticles in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=5.02TeV is presented in this article. The measurements are carried out at midrapidity (|y|< 0.5) as a function of collision centrality using the ALICE detector. The pT-integrated yields, the coalescence parameters and the ratios to protons and antiprotons are reported and compared with nucleosynthesis models. The comparison of these results in different collision systems at different center-of-mass collision energies reveals a suppression of nucleus production in small systems. In the Statistical Hadronisation Model framework, this can be explained by a small correlation volume where the baryon number is conserved, as already shown in previous fluctuation analyses. However, a different size of the correlation volume is required to describe the proton yields in the same data sets. The coalescence model can describe this suppression by the fact that the wave functions of the nuclei are large and the fireball size starts to become comparable and even much smaller than the actual nucleus at low multiplicities.Received 10 February 2023Accepted 16 May 2023DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.107.064904Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.©2023 CERN, for the ALICE CollaborationPhysics Subject Headings (PhySH)Research AreasParticle & resonance productionParticle correlations & fluctuationsRelativistic heavy-ion collisionsPropertiesA ≤ 5Accelerators & BeamsNuclear Physics

Impact of string interactions on the space–time evolution of hadronic vertices

We investigate the space–time picture of string evolution and hadron production in a fully string-based model for high energy collisions involving heavy-ions. We find that although the density of strings is quite large at the time of hadronization in a central heavy-ion collision, the initial overlap between them right after the collisions is not necessarily large. We also find that when including string-string interactions using the so-called shoving model, the density of strings is decreased which should dampen the rapid increase in string tension in the rope hadronization with multiplicity that we found in a previous paper.

Anisotropic flow and flow fluctuations of identified hadrons in Pb–Pb collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV

The first measurements of elliptic flow of π±, K±, textrm{p}+overline{textrm{p}} , {textrm{K}}_{textrm{S}}^0 , Lambda +overline{Lambda} , ϕ, {Xi}^{-}+{overline{Xi}}^{+} , and {varOmega}^{-}+{overline{varOmega}}^{+} using multiparticle cumulants in Pb–Pb collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV are resented. Results obtained with two- (v2{2}) and four-particle cumulants (v2{4}) are shown as a function of transverse momentum, pT, for various collision centrality intervals. Combining the data for both v2{2} and v2{4} also allows us to report the first measurements of the mean elliptic flow, elliptic flow fluctuations, and relative elliptic flow fluctuations for various hadron species. These observables probe the event-by-event eccentricity fluctuations in the initial state and the contributions from the dynamic evolution of the expanding quark–gluon plasma. The characteristic features observed in previous pT-differential anisotropic flow measurements for identified hadrons with two-particle correlations, namely the mass ordering at low pT and the approximate scaling with the number of constituent quarks at intermediate pT, are similarly present in the four-particle correlations and the combinations of v2{2} and v2{4}. In addition, a particle species dependence of flow fluctuations is observed that could indicate a significant contribution from final state hadronic interactions. The comparison between experimental measurements and CoLBT model calculations, which combine the various physics processes of hydrodynamics, quark coalescence, and jet fragmentation, illustrates their importance over a wide pT range.

Long-range and short-range dihadron correlations in central PbPb collisions at (s_NN )=5.02 TeV and centrality 40-50%

This paper reports the first measurement of charged particle elliptic flow in Pb-Pb collisions at (s_NN ) = 5.02T eV with the ALICE detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The measurement is performed on more than 20,000 events in 40-50% centrality class on both long-range 2 &lt; || &lt; 4 and short-range || &lt; 1 regions. The two-particle correlation method is used over long-range region, in the transverse momentum range of 1 &lt; p_T &lt; 1.5GeV , and the elliptic flow signals, given by v_n =(V_n ) , are v_2 = 0.17 0.01,v_3 = 0.07 0.01,v_4 = 0.04 0.01,v_5 = 0.03 0.01. Since V_1 is obtained as -0.0013, it does not have a square root value. In addition, for n=2-4, it is found that v_n increases as p_T increases. The Q-vectors method is also used to determine the values of v_2. The magnitudes of the Q-vectors are fitted to a function. The values of v_2 produced by the two methods are compared and discussed. At the end, the vectors are used to analyse high-energy jet particles.

Time-dependent Hartree-Fock study of quasifission trajectories in reactions forming Og294

Background: Fission modes in superheavy nuclei are expected to be impacted by quantum shell effects. Similar shell effects may be present in quasifission reactions, acting to hinder the mass equilibration process in heavy-ion collisions.Purpose: To investigate quasifission mechanisms in five different reactions forming $^{294}\mathrm{Og}$ as a compound nucleus and compare quasifission trajectories with predicted fission modes.Methods: The potential energy surface (PES) of $^{294}\mathrm{Og}$ is calculated using the static Hartree-Fock approach with BCS pairing correlations. Quasifission trajectories for central collisions at various energies are studied with the time-dependent Hartree-Fock theory.Results: The exit channel strongly depends on initial mass asymmetry and orientation, but it only exhibits small dependencies in the reaction energy. The $^{48}\mathrm{Ca}+^{246}\mathrm{Cf}$ reaction is affected by the PES topography, leading to either fusion or asymmetric fission. $^{126}\mathrm{Sn}+^{168}\mathrm{Er}$ reactions exhibit large total kinetic energies and compact scission configurations, which could be interpreted as an effect of the $Z=50$ spherical magic gap.Conclusions: Quasifission trajectories can be interpreted in terms of the underlying PES for low excitation energies. Future investigations of quasifission with temperature- and angular-momentum-dependent PES could be considered.

Measurement of the nuclear modification factor of b-jets in 5.02 TeV Pb+Pb collisions with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents a measurement of b-jet production in Pb+Pb and pp collisions at sqrt{s_{_text {NN}}}=5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The measurement uses 260 text {pb}^{-1} of pp collisions collected in 2017 and 1.4 text {nb}^{-1} of Pb+Pb collisions collected in 2018. In both collision systems, jets are reconstructed via the anti-k_{t} algorithm. The b-jets are identified from a sample of jets containing muons from the semileptonic decay of b-quarks using template fits of the muon momentum relative to the jet axis. In pp collisions, b-jets are reconstructed for radius parameters R= 0.2 and R= 0.4, and only R= 0.2 jets are used in Pb+Pb collisions. For comparison, inclusive R= 0.2 jets are also measured using 1.7 text {nb}^{-1} of Pb+Pb collisions collected in 2018 and the same pp collision data as the b-jet measurement. The nuclear modification factor, R_text {AA}, is calculated for both b-jets and inclusive jets with R= 0.2 over the transverse momentum range of 80–290 GeV. The nuclear modification factor for b-jets decreases from peripheral to central collisions. The ratio of the b-jet R_text {AA} to inclusive jet R_text {AA} is also presented and suggests that the R_text {AA} for b-jets is larger than that for inclusive jets in central Pb+Pb collisions. The measurements are compared with theoretical calculations and suggest a role for mass and colour-charge effects in partonic energy loss in heavy-ion collisions.

Observation of flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=5.02TeV at the CERN Large Hadron Collider

This Letter reports on the first measurements of transverse momentum dependent flow angle $\Psi_n$ and flow magnitude $v_n$ fluctuations, determined using new four-particle correlators. The measurements are performed for various centralities in Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV with ALICE at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Both flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations are observed in the presented centrality ranges and are strongest in the most central collisions and for a transverse momentum $p_{\rm T}>2$ GeV/$c$. Comparison with theoretical models, including iEBE-VISHNU, MUSIC, and AMPT, show that the measurements exhibit unique sensitivities to the initial state of heavy-ion collisions.

Beam Energy Dependence of Triton Production and Yield Ratio (N_{t}×N_{p}/N_{d}^{2}) in Au+Au Collisions at RHIC.

We report the triton (t) production in midrapidity (|y|<0.5) Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=7.7-200 GeV measured by the STAR experiment from the first phase of the beam energy scan at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. The nuclear compound yield ratio (N_{t}×N_{p}/N_{d}^{2}), which is predicted to be sensitive to the fluctuation of local neutron density, is observed to decrease monotonically with increasing charged-particle multiplicity (dN_{ch}/dη) and follows a scaling behavior. The dN_{ch}/dη dependence of the yield ratio is compared to calculations from coalescence and thermal models. Enhancements in the yield ratios relative to the coalescence baseline are observed in the 0%-10% most central collisions at 19.6 and 27GeV, with a significance of 2.3σ and 3.4σ, respectively, giving a combined significance of 4.1σ. The enhancements are not observed in peripheral collisions or model calculations without critical fluctuation, and decreases with a smaller p_{T} acceptance. The physics implications of these results on the QCD phase structure and the production mechanism of light nuclei in heavy-ion collisions are discussed.

Correlations between flow and transverse momentum in Xe+Xe and Pb+Pb collisions at the LHC with the ATLAS detector: A probe of the heavy-ion initial state and nuclear deformation

The correlations between flow harmonics $v_n$ for $n=2$, 3 and 4 and mean transverse momentum $[p_\mathrm{T}]$ in $^{129}$Xe+$^{129}$Xe and $^{208}$Pb+$^{208}$Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}=5.44$ TeV and 5.02 TeV, respectively, are measured using charged particles with the ATLAS detector. The correlations are sensitive to the shape and size of the initial geometry, nuclear deformation, and initial momentum anisotropy. The effects from non-flow and centrality fluctuations are minimized, respectively, via a subevent cumulant method and event activity selection based on particle production in the very forward rapidity. The results show strong dependences on centrality, harmonic number $n$, $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ and pseudorapidity range. Current models describe qualitatively the overall centrality- and system-dependent trends but fail to quantitatively reproduce all the data. In the central collisions, where models generally show good agreement, the $v_2$-$[p_\mathrm{T}]$ correlations are sensitive to the triaxiality of the quadruple deformation. The comparison of model to the Pb+Pb and Xe+Xe data suggests that the $^{129}$Xe nucleus is a highly deformed triaxial ellipsoid that is neither a prolate nor an oblate shape. This provides strong evidence for a triaxial deformation of $^{129}$Xe nucleus using high-energy heavy-ion collision.

Measurement of substructure-dependent jet suppression in Pb+Pb collisions at 5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider has been used to measure jet substructure modification and suppression in Pb+Pb collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_{_\mathrm{NN}}}=5.02~\mathrm{TeV}$ in comparison with $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=5.02~\mathrm{TeV}$. The Pb+Pb data, collected in 2018, have an integrated luminosity of $1.72~\mathrm{nb^{-1}}$, while the $pp$ data, collected in 2017, have an integrated luminosity of $260~\mathrm{pb}^{-1}$. Jets used in this analysis are clustered using the anti-$k_{t}$ algorithm with a radius parameter $R=0.4$. The jet constituents, defined by both tracking and calorimeter information, are used to determine the angular scale $r_\mathrm{g}$ of the first hard splitting inside the jet by reclustering them using the Cambridge-Aachen algorithm and employing the soft-drop grooming technique. The nuclear modification factor, $R_\mathrm{AA}$, used to characterize jet suppression in Pb+Pb collisions, is presented differentially in $r_\mathrm{g}$, jet transverse momentum, and in intervals of collision centrality. The $R_\mathrm{AA}$ value is observed to depend significantly on jet $r_\mathrm{g}$. Jets produced with the largest measured $r_\mathrm{g}$ are found to be twice as suppressed as those with the smallest $r_\mathrm{g}$ in central Pb+Pb collisions. The $R_\mathrm{AA}$ values do not exhibit a strong variation with jet $p_\mathrm{T}$ in any of the $r_\mathrm{g}$ intervals. The $r_\mathrm{g}$ and $p_\mathrm{T}$ dependence of jet $R_\mathrm{AA}$ is qualitatively consistent with a picture of jet quenching arising from coherence and provides the most direct evidence in support of this approach.

Centrality Determination in Heavy-Ion Collisions Based on Monte-Carlo Sampling of Spectator Fragments

The size and evolution of the matter created in a relativistic heavy-ion collision strongly depend on collision geometry, defined by centrality. Experimentally the centrality of collisions can be characterized by the measured multiplicities of the produced particles at midrapidity or by the energy measured in the forward rapidity region, which is sensitive to the spectator fragments. This serves as a proxy for the true collision centrality, as defined by the impact parameter in the models of collisions. In this work, the procedure for centrality determination based on Monte-Carlo sampling of spectator fragments has been proposed. The validity of the procedure has been checked using the fully reconstructed DCM-QGSM-SMM model events and published data from the NA61/SHINE experiment.

W±-boson production in p–Pb collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 8.16 TeV and Pb–Pb collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV

The production of the W± bosons measured in p–Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon–nucleon collision sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 8.16 TeV and Pb–Pb collisions at sqrt{s_{textrm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV with ALICE at the LHC is presented. The W± bosons are measured via their muonic decay channel, with the muon reconstructed in the pseudorapidity region −4 < {eta}_{textrm{lab}}^{mu } < −2.5 with transverse momentum {p}_{textrm{T}}^{mu } > 10 GeV/c. While in Pb–Pb collisions the measurements are performed in the forward (2.5 < {y}_{textrm{cms}}^{mu } < 4) rapidity region, in p–Pb collisions, where the centre-of-mass frame is boosted with respect to the laboratory frame, the measurements are performed in the backward (−4.46 < {y}_{textrm{cms}}^{mu } < −2.96) and forward (2.03 < {y}_{textrm{cms}}^{mu } < 3.53) rapidity regions. The W− and W+ production cross sections, lepton-charge asymmetry, and nuclear modification factors are evaluated as a function of the muon rapidity. In order to study the production as a function of the p–Pb collision centrality, the production cross sections of the W− and W+ bosons are combined and normalised to the average number of binary nucleon–nucleon collision 〈Ncoll〉. In Pb–Pb collisions, the same measurements are presented as a function of the collision centrality. Study of the binary scaling of the W±-boson cross sections in p–Pb and Pb–Pb collisions is also reported. The results are compared with perturbative QCD calculations, with and without nuclear modifications of the Parton Distribution Functions (PDFs), as well as with available data at the LHC. Significant deviations from the theory expectations are found in the two collision systems, indicating that the measurements can provide additional constraints for the determination of nuclear PDFs and in particular of the light-quark distributions.

Light-nuclei production in pp and pA collisions in the baryon canonical ensemble approach

The increase in yields of light nuclei with charged particle multiplicity, as reported by the ALICE collaboration at CERN in p-p and p-Pb collisions at the LHC energy is investigated in the thermal hadron resonance gas model. The model is extended to account for exact baryon number conservation. The focus is on the production of protons, deuterons, $^3$He, and $^3_\Lambda$H. A very good description of proton and deuteron yields is obtained as a function of charged particle multiplicity in the mid-rapidity region using the same fixed temperature as in central Pb-Pb collisions. The yields of light nuclei $^3$He and $^3_\Lambda$H though qualitatively explained as a function of multiplicity, are lower than the model expectation. One of the possible reasons could be that for $^{3}$He and $^{3}_{\Lambda}$H, the chemical equilibrium is not yet reached at small multiplicities.