33 research outputs found
A model-independent analysis of the dependence of the anomalous J/psi suppression on the number of participant nucleons
A recently published experimental dependence of the J/psi to Drell-Yan ratio
on the measured, by a zero degree calorimeter, forward energy E_ZDC in Pb+Pb
collisions at the CERN SPS is analyzed. Using a model-independent approach it
is shown that the data are at variance with an earlier published experimental
dependence of the same quantity on the transverse energy of neutral hadrons
E_T. The discrepancy is related to a moderate centrality region: 100 < N_p <
200 (N_p is the number of participant nucleons) and is peculiar only to the
data obtained within the `minimum bias' analysis (using the `theoretical
Drell-Yan'). This could result from systematic experimental errors in the
minimum bias sample. A possible source of the errors is discussed.Comment: 10 pages, LaTeX, 3 PS-figures. V2: Misprints are correcte
Interpretations of suppression
We review the two main interpretations of suppression proposed in
the literature. The phase transition (or deconfining) scenario assumes that
below some critical value of the local energy density (or of some other
geometrical quantity which depends both on the colliding systems and on the
centrality of the collision), there is only nuclear absorption. Above this
critical value the absorptive cross-section is taken to be infinite, i.e. no
can survive in this hot region. In the hadronic scenario the
dissociates due both to nuclear absorption and to its interactions with
co-moving hadrons produced in the collision. No discontinuity exists in
physical observables. We show that an equally good description of the present
data is possible in either scenario.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX, uses epsfig and ioplppt; review talk given by A.
Capella at the International Symposium on Strangness in Quark Matter,
Santorini (Greece), April 1997; Figs. 1 and 2 not available but can be found
in Refs. 13 and 6 respectivel
Hadronic centrality dependence in nuclear collisions
The kaon number density in nucleus+nucleus and p+p reactions is investigated
for the first time as a function of the initial energy density and
is found to exhibit a discontinuity around =1.3 GeV/fm. This
suggests a higher degree of chemical equilibrium for
1.3 GeV/fm. It can also be interpreted as reflection of the same
discontinuity, appearing in the chemical freeze out temperature (T) as a
function of . The dependence of (u,d,s) hadrons,
whith N the number of participating nucleons, also indicates a high degree of
chemical equilibrium and T saturation, reached at 1.3 GeV/fm.
Assuming that the intermediate mass region (IMR) dimuon enhancement seen by
NA50 is due to open charm (), the following observation can be made:
a) Charm is not equilibrated. b) suppression -unlike
- appears also in S+A collisions, above 1
GeV/fm. c) Both charm and strangeness show a discontinuity near the same
. d) could be formed mainly through coalescence.
e) The enhancement factors of hadrons with u,d,s,c quarks may be connected in a
simple way to the mass gain of these particles if they are produced out of a
quark gluon plasma (QGP). We discuss these results as possible evidence for the
QCD phase transition occuring near 1.3 GeV/fm.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, proceedings of Vth International Conference on
Strangeness in Quark Matter, 20-25 July 2000, Berkeley, California. To appear
in Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physic
Importance of reaction volume in hadronic collisions: Canonical enhancement
We study the canonical flavor enhancement arising from exact conservation of
strangeness, and charm flavor. Both the theoretical motivation, and the
practical consequences are explored. We argue using qualitative theoretical
arguments and quantitative evaluation, that this proposal to reevaluate
strangeness signature of quark--gluon plasma is not able to explain the
majority of available experimental results.Comment: 14 pages including 6 figures, submitted to Journal of Physics G
Presented at: Strange Quark Matter, September 2001, Frankfur
production in PHENIX
Heavy quarkonia production is expected to be sensitive to the formation of a
quark gluon plasma (QGP). The PHENIX experiment has measured
production at ~200 GeV in Au+Au and Cu+Cu collisions, as well
as in reference p+p and d+Au runs. 's were measured both at mid
() and forward () rapidity. In this letter, we present
the A+A preliminary results and compare them to normal cold nuclear matter
expectations derived from PHENIX d+Au and p+p measurements as well as to
theoretical models including various effects (color screening, recombination,
sequential melting...).Comment: 5 pages, 7 figures. To appear in the proceedings of Hot Quarks 2006:
Workshop for Young Scientists on the Physics of Ultrarelativistic
Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions, Villasimius, Italy, 15-20 May 200
Colour Deconfinement and Quarkonium Binding
At high temperatures, strongly interacting matter becomes a plasma of
deconfined quarks and gluons. In statistical QCD, deconfinement and the
properties of the resulting quark-gluon plasma can be investigated by studying
the in-medium behaviour of heavy quark bound states. In high energy nuclear
interactions, quarkonia probe different aspects of the medium formed in the
collision. We survey the results of recent charmonium production studies in SPS
and RHIC experiments.Comment: 50 pages, 53 figures; revised section 6.
Centrality and dE_{T}/d\etadN_{ch}/d\eta$ in Heavy Ion Collisions at Mid-Rapidity
The PHENIX experiment at RHIC has measured transverse energy and charged
particle multiplicity at mid-rapidity in Au + Au collisions at
= 19.6, 130, 62.4 and 200 GeV as a function of centrality. The presented
results are compared to measurements from other RHIC experiments, and
experiments at lower energies. The dependence of
and per pair of participants is consistent with logarithmic
scaling for the most central events. The centrality dependence of
and is similar at all measured incident
energies. At RHIC energies the ratio of transverse energy per charged particle
was found independent of centrality and growing slowly with . A
survey of comparisons between the data and available theoretical models is also
presented.Comment: Proccedings of the Workshop: Focus on Multiplcity at Bari, Italy,
June 17-19,2004. To be submitted to the Jornal of Physics, "Conference
series". Includes: 20 Pages, 15 figures, 3 Tables, 80 Referencie
Strange Messages: Chemical and Thermal Freeze-out in Nuclear Collisions
Thermal models are commonly used to interpret heavy-ion data on particle
yields and spectra and to extract the conditions of chemical and thermal
freeze-out in heavy-ion collisions. I discuss the usefulness and limitations of
such thermal model analyses and review the experimental and theoretical
evidence for thermalization in nuclear collisions. The crucial role of
correlating strangeness production data with single particle spectra and
two-particle correlation measurements is pointed out. A consistent dynamical
picture for the heavy-ion data from the CERN SPS involves an initial
prehadronic stage with deconfined color and with an appreciable isotropic
pressure component. This requires an early onset of thermalization.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures, talk given at Strange Quark Matter '98, Padova,
Italy, 20-24 July 1998, to be published in J. Phys. G 25; final version with
updated reference
Dissociation rates of J/psi's with comoving mesons - thermal vs. nonequilibrium scenario
We study J/psi dissociation processes in hadronic environments. The validity
of a thermal meson gas ansatz is tested by confronting it with an alternative,
nonequilibrium scenario. Heavy ion collisions are simulated in the framework of
the microscopic transport model UrQMD, taking into account the production of
charmonium states through hard parton-parton interactions and subsequent
rescattering with hadrons. The thermal gas and microscopic transport scenarios
are shown to be very dissimilar. Estimates of J/psi survival probabilities
based on thermal models of comover interactions in heavy ion collisions are
therefore not reliable.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figure