An Experimental Exploration of the QCD Phase Diagram: The Search for the Critical Point and the Onset of De-confinement

The QCD phase diagram lies at the heart of what the RHIC Physics Program is all about. While RHIC has been operating very successfully at or close to its maximum energy for almost a decade, it has become clear that this collider can also be operated at lower energies down to 5 GeV without extensive upgrades. An exploration of the full region of beam energies available at the RHIC facility is imperative. The STAR detector, due to its large uniform acceptance and excellent particle identification capabilities, is uniquely positioned to carry out this program in depth and detail. The first exploratory beam energy scan (BES) run at RHIC took place in 2010 (Run 10), since several STAR upgrades, most importantly a full barrel Time of Flight detector, are now completed which add new capabilities important for the interesting physics at BES energies. In this document we discuss current proposed measurements, with estimations of the accuracy of the measurements given an assumed event count at each beam energy

An Experimental Exploration of the QCD Phase Diagram: The Search for the Critical Point and the Onset of De-confinement

The QCD phase diagram lies at the heart of what the RHIC Physics Program is all about. While RHIC has been operating very successfully at or close to its maximum energy for almost a decade, it has become clear that this collider can also be operated at lower energies down to 5 GeV without extensive upgrades. An exploration of the full region of beam energies available at the RHIC facility is imperative. The STAR detector, due to its large uniform acceptance and excellent particle identification capabilities, is uniquely positioned to carry out this program in depth and detail. The first exploratory beam energy scan (BES) run at RHIC took place in 2010 (Run 10), since several STAR upgrades, most importantly a full barrel Time of Flight detector, are now completed which add new capabilities important for the interesting physics at BES energies. In this document we discuss current proposed measurements, with estimations of the accuracy of the measurements given an assumed event count at each beam energy

Measurement of charge multiplicity asymmetry correlations in high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions at sNN =200 GeV

A study is reported of the same- and opposite-sign charge-dependent azimuthal correlations with respect to the event plane in Au+Au collisions at sNN=200 GeV. The charge multiplicity asymmetries between the up/down and left/right hemispheres relative to the event plane are utilized. The contributions from statistical fluctuations and detector effects were subtracted from the (co-)variance of the observed charge multiplicity asymmetries. In the mid- to most-central collisions, the same- (opposite-) sign pairs are preferentially emitted in back-to-back (aligned on the same-side) directions. The charge separation across the event plane, measured by the difference, Δ, between the like- and unlike-sign up/down-left/right correlations, is largest near the event plane. The difference is found to be proportional to the event-by-event final-state particle ellipticity (via the observed second-order harmonic v2obs), where Δ=[1.3±1.4(stat)-1.0+4.0(syst)]×10- 5+[3.2±0.2(stat)-0.3+0.4(syst)]×10-3v2obs for 20-40% Au+Au collisions. The implications for the proposed chiral magnetic effect are discussed. © 2014 American Physical Society

Fluctuations of charge separation perpendicular to the event plane and local parity violation in s NN = 200 GeV Au + Au collisions at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider

Previous experimental results based on data (∼15×106 events) collected by the STAR detector at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider suggest event-by-event charge-separation fluctuations perpendicular to the event plane in noncentral heavy-ion collisions. Here we present the correlator previously used split into its two component parts to reveal correlations parallel and perpendicular to the event plane. The results are from a high-statistics 200-GeV Au + Au collisions data set (57×106 events) collected by the STAR experiment. We explicitly count units of charge separation from which we find clear evidence for more charge-separation fluctuations perpendicular than parallel to the event plane. We also employ a modified correlator to study the possible P-even background in same- and opposite-charge correlations, and find that the P-even background may largely be explained by momentum conservation and collective motion. © 2013 American Physical Society

Fluctuations of charge separation perpendicular to the event plane and local parity violation in s NN = 200 GeV Au + Au collisions at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider

Previous experimental results based on data (∼15×106 events) collected by the STAR detector at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider suggest event-by-event charge-separation fluctuations perpendicular to the event plane in noncentral heavy-ion collisions. Here we present the correlator previously used split into its two component parts to reveal correlations parallel and perpendicular to the event plane. The results are from a high-statistics 200-GeV Au + Au collisions data set (57×106 events) collected by the STAR experiment. We explicitly count units of charge separation from which we find clear evidence for more charge-separation fluctuations perpendicular than parallel to the event plane. We also employ a modified correlator to study the possible P-even background in same- and opposite-charge correlations, and find that the P-even background may largely be explained by momentum conservation and collective motion. © 2013 American Physical Society

Event-plane-dependent dihadron correlations with harmonic vn subtraction in Au + Au collisions at s NN =200 GeV

STAR measurements of dihadron azimuthal correlations (Δφ) are reported in midcentral (20-60%) Au+Au collisions at sNN=200 GeV as a function of the trigger particle's azimuthal angle relative to the event plane, φs=|φt-ψEP|. The elliptic (v2), triangular (v3), and quadratic (v4) flow harmonic backgrounds are subtracted using the zero yield at minimum (ZYAM) method. The results are compared to minimum-bias d+Au collisions. It is found that a finite near-side (|Δφ|<π/2) long-range pseudorapidity correlation (ridge) is present in the in-plane direction (φs∼0). The away-side (|Δφ|>π/2) correlation shows a modification from d+Au data, varying with φs. The modification may be a consequence of path-length-dependent jet quenching and may lead to a better understanding of high-density QCD. © 2014 American Physical Society

Elliptic flow of identified hadrons in Au+Au collisions at √s NN=7.7-62.4 GeV

Measurements of the elliptic flow, v2, of identified hadrons (π±, K±, Ks0, p, p̄, φ, Λ, Λ̄, Ξ-, Ξ̄+, Ω-, Ω̄+) in Au+Au collisions at √sNN=7.7, 11.5, 19.6, 27, 39, and 62.4 GeV are presented. The measurements were done at midrapidity using the time-projection chamber and the time-of-flight detectors of the Solenoidal Tracker at RHIC experiment during the beam-energy scan program at Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. A significant difference in the v2 values for particles and the corresponding antiparticles was observed at all transverse momenta for the first time. The difference increases with decreasing center-of-mass energy, √s NN (or increasing baryon chemical potential, μB), and is larger for the baryons as compared to the mesons. This implies that particles and antiparticles are no longer consistent with the universal number-of-constituent quark (NCQ) scaling of v2 that was observed at √sNN=200 GeV. However, for the selected group of particles (π+, K+, Ks0, p, Λ, Ξ-, Ω-) NCQ scaling at (mT-m0)/n q>0.4 GeV/c2 is not violated within ±10%. The v2 values for φ mesons at 7.7 and 11.5 GeV are approximately two standard deviations from the trend defined by the other hadrons at the highest measured pT values. © 2013 American Physical Society

Measurement of charge multiplicity asymmetry correlations in high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions at sNN =200 GeV

A study is reported of the same- and opposite-sign charge-dependent azimuthal correlations with respect to the event plane in Au+Au collisions at sNN=200 GeV. The charge multiplicity asymmetries between the up/down and left/right hemispheres relative to the event plane are utilized. The contributions from statistical fluctuations and detector effects were subtracted from the (co-)variance of the observed charge multiplicity asymmetries. In the mid- to most-central collisions, the same- (opposite-) sign pairs are preferentially emitted in back-to-back (aligned on the same-side) directions. The charge separation across the event plane, measured by the difference, Δ, between the like- and unlike-sign up/down-left/right correlations, is largest near the event plane. The difference is found to be proportional to the event-by-event final-state particle ellipticity (via the observed second-order harmonic v2obs), where Δ=[1.3±1.4(stat)-1.0+4.0(syst)]×10- 5+[3.2±0.2(stat)-0.3+0.4(syst)]×10-3v2obs for 20-40% Au+Au collisions. The implications for the proposed chiral magnetic effect are discussed. © 2014 American Physical Society

Freeze-out dynamics via charged kaon femtoscopy in √s NN=200 GeV central Au + Au collisions

We present measurements of three-dimensional correlation functions of like-sign, low-transverse-momentum kaon pairs from √s =200 GeV Au+Au collisions. A Cartesian surface-spherical harmonic decomposition technique was used to extract the kaon source function. The latter was found to have a three-dimensional Gaussian shape and can be adequately reproduced by Therminator event-generator simulations with resonance contributions taken into account. Compared to the pion one, the kaon source function is generally narrower and does not have the long tail along the pair transverse momentum direction. The kaon Gaussian radii display a monotonic decrease with increasing transverse mass m over the interval of 0.55≤m ≤1.15 GeV/c2. While the kaon radii are adequately described by the m -scaling in the outward and sideward directions, in the longitudinal direction the lowest m value exceeds the expectations from a pure hydrodynamical model prediction. © 2013 American Physical Society. NN T T T

Measurement of J/ψ azimuthal anisotropy in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=200 GeV.

The measurement of J/ψ azimuthal anisotropy is presented as a function of transverse momentum for different centralities in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=200 GeV. The measured J/ψ elliptic flow is consistent with zero within errors for transverse momentum between 2 and 10 GeV/c. Our measurement suggests that J/ψ particles with relatively large transverse momenta are not dominantly produced by coalescence from thermalized charm quarks, when comparing to model calculations