Two-Proton Correlations near Midrapidity in p+Pb and S+Pb Collisions at the CERN SPS

Correlations of two protons emitted near midrapidity in p+Pb collisions at 450 GeV/c and S+Pb collisions at 200A GeV/c are presented, as measured by the NA44 Experiment. The correlation effect, which arises as a result of final state interactions and Fermi-Dirac statistics, is related to the space-time characteristics of proton emission. The measured source sizes are smaller than the size of the target lead nucleus but larger than the sizes of the projectiles. A dependence on the collision centrality is observed; the source size increases with decreasing impact parameter. Proton source sizes near midrapidity appear to be smaller than those of pions in the same interactions. Quantitative agreement with the results of RQMD (v1.08) simulations is found for p+Pb collisions. For S+Pb collisions the measured correlation effect is somewhat weaker than that predicted by the model simulations, implying either a larger source size or larger contribution of protons from long-lived particle decays.Comment: 10 pages (LaTeX) text, 4 (EPS) figures; accepted for publication in Phys. Lett.

Strange Meson Enhancement in PbPb Collisions

The NA44 Collaboration has measured yields and differential distributions of K+, K-, pi+, pi- in transverse kinetic energy and rapidity, around the center-of-mass rapidity in 158 A GeV/c Pb+Pb collisions at the CERN SPS. A considerable enhancement of K+ production per pi is observed, as compared to p+p collisions at this energy. To illustrate the importance of secondary hadron rescattering as an enhancement mechanism, we compare strangeness production at the SPS and AGS with predictions of the transport model RQMD.Comment: 11 pages, including 4 figures, LATE

One and two dimensional analysis of 3pi correlations measured in Pb+Pb interactions

3pi- correlations from Pb+Pb collisions at 158 GeV/c per nucleon are presented as measured by the focusing spectrometer of the NA44 experiment at CERN. The three-body effect is found to be stronger for PbPb than for SPb. The two-dimensional three-particle correlation function is also measured and the longitudinal extension of the source is larger than the transverse extension

Charged kaon and pion production at midrapidity in proton nucleus and sulphur nucleus collisions

The NA44 collaboration has measured charged kaon and pion distributions at midrapidity in sulphur and proton collisions with nuclear targets at 200 and 450 GeV/c per nucleon, respectively. The inverse slopes of kaons are larger than those of pions. The difference in the inverse slopes of pions, kaons and protons, all measured in our spectrometer, increases with system size and is consistent with the buildup of collective flow for larger systems. The target dependence of both the yields and inverse slopes is stronger for the sulphur beam suggesting the increased importance of secondary rescattering for SA reactions. The rapidity density, dN/dy, of both K+ and K- increases more rapidly with system size than for pi+ in a similar rapidity region. This trend continues with increasing centrality, and according to RQMD, it is caused by secondary reactions between mesons and baryons. The K-/K+ ratio falls with increasing system size but more slowly than the pbar/p ratio. The pi-/pi+ ratio is close to unity for all systems. From pBe to SPb the K+/p ratio decreases while K-/pbar increases and ({K+*K-}/{p*pbar})**1/2 stays constant. These data suggest that as larger nuclei collide, the resulting system has a larger transverse expansion, baryon density and an increasing fraction of strange quarks.The NA44 collaboration has measured charged kaon and pion distributions at midrapidity in sulphur and proton collisions with nuclear targets at 200 and 450 GeV/c per nucleon, respectively. The inverse slopes of kaons are larger than those of pions. The difference in the inverse slopes of pions, kaons and protons, all measured in our spectrometer, increases with system size and is consistent with the buildup of collective flow for larger systems. The target dependence of both the yields and inverse slopes is stronger for the sulphur beam suggesting the increased importance of secondary rescattering for SA reactions. The rapidity density, dN/dy, of both K+ and K- increases more rapidly with system size than for pi+ in a similar rapidity region. This trend continues with increasing centrality, and according to RQMD, it is caused by secondary reactions between mesons and baryons. The K-/K+ ratio falls with increasing system size but more slowly than the pbar/p ratio. The pi-/pi+ ratio is close to unity for all systems. From pBe to SPb the K+/p ratio decreases while K-/pbar increases and ({K+*K-}/{p*pbar})**1/2 stays constant. These data suggest that as larger nuclei collide, the resulting system has a larger transverse expansion, baryon density and an increasing fraction of strange quarks.The NA44 collaboration has measured charged kaon and pion distributions at midrapidity in sulphur and proton collisions with nuclear targets at 200 and 450 GeV/c per nucleon, respectively. The inverse slopes of kaons are larger than those of pions. The difference in the inverse slopes of pions, kaons and protons, all measured in our spectrometer, increases with system size and is consistent with the buildup of collective flow for larger systems. The target dependence of both the yields and inverse slopes is stronger for the sulphur beam suggesting the increased importance of secondary rescattering for SA reactions. The rapidity density, dN/dy, of both K+ and K- increases more rapidly with system size than for pi+ in a similar rapidity region. This trend continues with increasing centrality, and according to RQMD, it is caused by secondary reactions between mesons and baryons. The K-/K+ ratio falls with increasing system size but more slowly than the pbar/p ratio. The pi-/pi+ ratio is close to unity for all systems. From pBe to SPb the K+/p ratio decreases while K-/pbar increases and ({K+*K-}/{p*pbar})**1/2 stays constant. These data suggest that as larger nuclei collide, the resulting system has a larger transverse expansion, baryon density and an increasing fraction of strange quarks

The energy dependence of ptp_t angular correlations inferred from mean-ptp_{t} fluctuation scale dependence in heavy ion collisions at the SPS and RHIC

We present the first study of the energy dependence of $p_t$ angular correlations inferred from event-wise mean transverse momentum fluctuations in heavy ion collisions. We compare our large-acceptance measurements at CM energies $\sqrt{s_{NN}} =$ 19.6, 62.4, 130 and 200 GeV to SPS measurements at 12.3 and 17.3 GeV. $p_t$ angular correlation structure suggests that the principal source of $p_t$ correlations and fluctuations is minijets (minimum-bias parton fragments). We observe a dramatic increase in correlations and fluctuations from SPS to RHIC energies, increasing linearly with $\ln \sqrt{s_{NN}}$ from the onset of observable jet-related fluctuations near 10 GeV.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Longitudinal double-spin asymmetry and cross section for inclusive neutral pion production at midrapidity in polarized proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV

We report a measurement of the longitudinal double-spin asymmetry A_LL and the differential cross section for inclusive Pi0 production at midrapidity in polarized proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV. The cross section was measured over a transverse momentum range of 1 < p_T < 17 GeV/c and found to be in good agreement with a next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculation. The longitudinal double-spin asymmetry was measured in the range of 3.7 < p_T < 11 GeV/c and excludes a maximal positive gluon polarization in the proton. The mean transverse momentum fraction of Pi0's in their parent jets was found to be around 0.7 for electromagnetically triggered events.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (RC

Partonic flow and ϕ\phi-meson production in Au+Au collisions at sNN\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 200 GeV

We present first measurements of the $\phi$-meson elliptic flow ($v_{2}(p_{T})$) and high statistics $p_{T}$ distributions for different centralities from $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 200 GeV Au+Au collisions at RHIC. In minimum bias collisions the $v_{2}$ of the $\phi$ meson is consistent with the trend observed for mesons. The ratio of the yields of the $\Omega$ to those of the $\phi$ as a function of transverse momentum is consistent with a model based on the recombination of thermal $s$ quarks up to $p_{T}\sim 4$ GeV/$c$, but disagrees at higher momenta. The nuclear modification factor ($R_{CP}$) of $\phi$ follows the trend observed in the $K^{0}_{S}$ mesons rather than in $\Lambda$ baryons, supporting baryon-meson scaling. Since $\phi$-mesons are made via coalescence of seemingly thermalized $s$ quarks in central Au+Au collisions, the observations imply hot and dense matter with partonic collectivity has been formed at RHIC.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, submit to PR

Plasma Wakefield Acceleration with a Modulated Proton Bunch

The plasma wakefield amplitudes which could be achieved via the modulation of a long proton bunch are investigated. We find that in the limit of long bunches compared to the plasma wavelength, the strength of the accelerating fields is directly proportional to the number of particles in the drive bunch and inversely proportional to the square of the transverse bunch size. The scaling laws were tested and verified in detailed simulations using parameters of existing proton accelerators, and large electric fields were achieved, reaching 1 GV/m for LHC bunches. Energy gains for test electrons beyond 6 TeV were found in this case.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure

Azimuthal anisotropy and correlations in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at 200 GeV

We present the first measurement of directed flow ($v_1$) at RHIC. $v_1$ is found to be consistent with zero at pseudorapidities $\eta$ from -1.2 to 1.2, then rises to the level of a couple of percent over the range $2.4 < |\eta| < 4$. The latter observation is similar to data from NA49 if the SPS rapidities are shifted by the difference in beam rapidity between RHIC and SPS. Back-to-back jets emitted out-of-plane are found to be suppressed more if compared to those emitted in-plane, which is consistent with {\it jet quenching}. Using the scalar product method, we systematically compared azimuthal correlations from p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions. Flow and non-flow from these three different collision systems are discussed.Comment: Quark Matter 2004 proceeding, 4 pages, 3 figure

Azimuthal anisotropy: the higher harmonics

We report the first observations of the fourth harmonic (v_4) in the azimuthal distribution of particles at RHIC. The measurement was done taking advantage of the large elliptic flow generated at RHIC. The integrated v_4 is about a factor of 10 smaller than v_2. For the sixth (v_6) and eighth (v_8) harmonics upper limits on the magnitudes are reported.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures, contribution to the Quark Matter 2004 proceeding