Partonic Flow and phi-Meson production in Au+Au collisions at sqrt radical sNN = 200 GeV

We present first measurements of the phi-meson elliptic flow (v2(pT)) and high-statistics pT distributions for different centralities from radical sNN=200 GeV Au+Au collisions at RHIC. In minimum bias collisions the v2 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 pT approximately 4 GeV/c, but disagrees at higher momenta. The nuclear modification factor (R CP) of phi follows the trend observed in the K S 0 mesons rather than in Lambda baryons, supporting baryon-meson scaling. These data are consistent with phi mesons in central Au+Au collisions being created via coalescence of thermalized s quarks and the formation of a hot and dense matter with partonic collectivity at RHIC.     

Elliptic flow at large transverse momenta from quark coalescence

We show that hadronization via quark coalescence enhances hadron elliptic flow at large p(perpendicular) relative to that of partons at the same transverse momentum. Therefore, compared to earlier results based on covariant parton transport theory, more moderate initial parton densities dN/deta(b=0) approximately 1500-3000 can explain the differential elliptic flow v(2)(p(perpendicular)) data for Au+Au reactions at sqrt[s]=130 and 200A GeV from BNL RHIC. In addition, v(2)(p(perpendicular)) could saturate at about 50% higher values for baryons than for mesons. If strange quarks have weaker flow than light quarks, hadron v(2) at high p(perpendicular) decreases with relative strangeness content.     

Φ Meson Production in Heavy Ion Collisions at RHIC

We present Φ meson production in Cu+Cu and Au+Au collisions measured by the STAR experiment at RHIC.The hadronic decay mode Φ→K~+K~- is used in the analysis.The yields for Φ meson in Cu+Cu and Au+Au collisions at a given beam energy are scaled by the number of participant.The N_(part) normalized Φ meson yields in heavy ion collisions over those from p+p collisions are larger than 1 and increase with collision energy.These results suggest that the source of enhancement of strange hadrons is related to the formation of a dense medium in high energy heavy ion collisions and can not be only due to canonical suppression of their production in smaller systems.We also present STAR results on the Φ meson elliptic flow υ_2 from 2~(1/SNN)=200 GeV Cu+Cu at RHIC.The elliptic flow in Cu+Cu system that has the similar relative magnitude and qualitative features as that in Au+Au system.The observations imply the hot and dense matter with partonic collectivity has been formed in heavy ion collisions at RHIC.However,eccentrality normalized υ_2,υ_2/(n_qε_(part)) is lower for Cu+Cu than for Au+Au collisions at 200 GeV.So this might indicate thermalization has not been reached in 200 GeV Cu+Cu collisions.     

The beauty of the electromagnetic probe

Selected results from the first five years of RHIC data taking are reviewed with emphasis on the evidence for thermalization in central Au + Au collisions at = 200GeV.     

Elliptic flow at SPS and RHIC: from kinetic transport to hydrodynamics

Anisotropic transverse flow is studied in Pb+Pb and Au+Au collisions at SPS and RHIC energies. The centrality and transverse momentum dependence at midrapidity of the elliptic flow coefficient v₂ is calculated in the hydrodynamic and low density limits. Hydrodynamics is found to agree well with the RHIC data for semicentral collisions up to transverse momenta of 1–1.5 GeV/c, but it considerably overestimates the measured elliptic flow at SPS energies. The low density limit LDL is inconsistent with the measured magnitude of v₂ at RHIC energies and with the shape of its p_t-dependence at both RHIC and SPS energies. The success of the hydrodynamic model points to very rapid thermalization in Au+Au collisions at RHIC and provides a serious challenge for kinetic approaches based on classical scattering of on-shell particles.     

Pseudorapidity and centrality dependence of the collective flow of charged particles in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=130 GeV

This paper describes the measurement of collective flow for charged particles in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=130 GeV using the PHOBOS detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The measured azimuthal hit anisotropy is presented over a wide range of pseudorapidity (-5.0相似文献   

What can we learn from the energy dependence of strangeness production at RHIC?

Measurements of strange and multi-strange particles with the STAR detector at center of mass energies per nucleon pair () of 62.4 GeV and 200 GeV in ultra-relativistic Au+Au collisions at RHIC are presented. The results are discussed in order to get insight into chemical and dynamical properties of the created medium. The former are obtained by comparison of transverse momentum (p_T) integrated observables such as yields and particle ratios to statistical models, while the latter use p_T dependent quantities such as single particle spectra and elliptic flow measurements to challenge hydrodynamical model calculations and parameterizations. The discussion is orientated towards the energy dependence of these properties by confronting the results at the different RHIC energies but also with the lower SPS energies.     

Azimuthal anisotropy and correlations in the hard scattering regime at RHIC

Azimuthal anisotropy (v(2)) and two-particle angular correlations of high p(T) charged hadrons have been measured in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=130 GeV for transverse momenta up to 6 GeV/c, where hard processes are expected to contribute significantly. The two-particle angular correlations exhibit elliptic flow and a structure suggestive of fragmentation of high p(T) partons. The monotonic rise of v(2)(p(T)) for p(T)<2 GeV/c is consistent with collective hydrodynamical flow calculations. At p(T)>3 GeV/c, a saturation of v(2) is observed which persists up to p(T)=6 GeV/c.     

Elliptic flow of transported and produced protons in Au+Au collisions with the UrQMD model

Within the framework of the UrQMD model, by tracing the number of initial quarks in protons, we study the elliptic flow of protons with 3, 2, 1, 0 initial quarks and anti-protons in Au+Au collisions at SNN~(1/2)= 7.7, 11.5, 39,200 GeV. The difference of elliptic flow between protons with 2, 1, 0 initial quarks and anti-protons is smaller than 0,or consistent with 0, respectively. The difference of elliptic flow between transported protons(with 3 initial quarks)and anti-protons is larger than 0 at 7.7, 11.5 and 39 GeV. This is in good agreement with the STAR results at 7.7 and 11.5 GeV, but overestimates the STAR results at 39 GeV. The yield of transported protons with 3 initial quarks is smaller than of protons with 2 and 1 initial quarks, and v_2 of all protons is much smaller than the STAR results. The observation of the v_2 difference of elliptic flow between transported protons and anti-protons in the UrQMD model partly explains the difference between protons and anti-protons observed in the Beam Energy Scan program at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider(RHIC).     

Systematics of elliptic flow in heavy-ion collisions

We analyze elliptic flow from SIS to RHIC energies systematically in a realistic dynamical cascade model. We compare our results with the recent data from STAR and PHOBOS collaborations on elliptic flow of charged particles at midrapidity in Au+ Au collisions at RHIC. In the analysis of elliptic flow at RHIC energy, we find a good fitting with data at 1.5 times a scaling factor to our model, which characterizes that the model is required to have extra pressure generated from the subsequent parton scattering after the initial minijet production. In energy dependence of elliptic flow, we notice re-hardening nature at RHIC energies. Both these two observations would probably imply the possible formation of quark-gluon plasma.     

Transverse-mass dependence of two-pion correlations in Au+Au collisions at square root[s(NN)] = 130 GeV

Two-pion correlations in square root[s(NN)] = 130 GeV Au+Au collisions at RHIC have been measured over a broad range of pair transverse momentum k(T) by the PHENIX experiment at RHIC. The k(T) dependent transverse radii are similar to results from heavy-ion collisions at square root[s(NN)] = 4.1, 4.9, and 17.3 GeV, whereas the longitudinal radius increases monotonically with beam energy. The ratio of the outwards to sidewards transverse radii (R(out)/R(side)) is consistent with unity and independent of k(T).     

Identified particle distributions in pp and Au+Au collisions at square root of (sNN)=200 GeV

Transverse mass and rapidity distributions for charged pions, charged kaons, protons, and antiprotons are reported for square root of [sNN]=200 GeV pp and Au+Au collisions at Relativistic Heary Ion Collider (RHIC). Chemical and kinetic equilibrium model fits to our data reveal strong radial flow and long duration from chemical to kinetic freeze-out in central Au+Au collisions. The chemical freeze-out temperature appears to be independent of initial conditions at RHIC energies.     

Midrapidity antiproton-to-proton ratio from Au+Au collisions at sqrt [s(NN)]=130 GeV

We report results on the ratio of midrapidity antiproton-to-proton yields in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)] = 130 GeV per nucleon pair as measured by the STAR experiment at RHIC. Within the rapidity and transverse momentum range of /y/<0.5 and 0.4相似文献   

Elliptic flow for phi mesons and (anti)deuterons in Au+Au collisions at square root of sNN=200 GeV

Differential elliptic flow (v(2)) for phi mesons and (anti)deuterons (d)d is measured for Au+Au collisions at square root of sNN=200 GeV. The v(2) for phi mesons follows the trend of lighter pi+/- and K+/- mesons, suggesting that ordinary hadrons interacting with standard hadronic cross sections are not the primary driver for elliptic flow development. The v(2) values for (d)d suggest that elliptic flow is additive for composite particles. This further validation of the universal scaling of v(2) per constituent quark for baryons and mesons suggests that partonic collectivity dominates the transverse expansion dynamics.     

Viscous effects on elliptic flow and shock waves

Fast thermalization and a strong buildup of the elliptic flow of QCD matter as found at RHIC are understood as the consequence of perturbative QCD (pQCD) interactions within the 3+1 dimensional parton cascade BAMPS. The main contributions stem from pQCD bremsstrahlung 2↔3 processes. By comparison to Au+Au data of the flow parameter v₂ as a function of participation number the shear viscosity to entropy ratio is dynamically extracted, which lies in the range of 0.08 and 0.2, depending on the chosen coupling constant and freeze out condition. Furthermore, first simulations on the temporal propagation of dissipative shock waves are given. The cascade can either simulate true ideal shocks as well as initially diluted, truly viscous shocks, depending on the employed cross sections or mean free path, respectively.     

Elliptic flow of identified hadrons in Au+Au collisions at sqrt sNN =200 GeV

The anisotropy parameter (v(2)), the second harmonic of the azimuthal particle distribution, has been measured with the PHENIX detector in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=200 GeV for identified and inclusive charged particle production at central rapidities (|eta|<0.35) with respect to the reaction plane defined at high rapidities (|eta|=3-4 ). We observe that the v(2) of mesons falls below that of (anti)baryons for p(T)>2 GeV/c, in marked contrast to the predictions of a hydrodynamical model. A quark-coalescence model is also investigated.     

Charm production in the STAR experiment at RHIC

The single electron spectrum over a sufficiently broad range provides an indirect measurement of charm and beauty production at RHIC energies. Heavy-quarks are produced in parton-parton scattering in the initial phase of the collision and thus provide important information about the initial configuration of the colliding nuclei. Even more important, the final state spectra reflect the interactions of these heavy partons with the medium and thus allow us to probe the properties of the hot and dense system created in heavy-ion collisions. We present preliminary measurements of electron and positron spectra in pp and d + Au as well as preliminary elliptic flow measurements in Au + Au collisions at GeV performed by the STAR experiment. We describe the measurement techniques used to discriminate electrons from hadrons and compare the results with theoretical calculations. PACS. 25.75.-q Arrival of the final proofs: 20 June 2005     

Net baryon density in Au+Au collisions at the relativistic heavy ion collider

We calculate the net-baryon rapidity distribution in Au+Au collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) in the framework of the parton cascade model (PCM). Parton rescattering and fragmentation leads to a substantial increase in the net-baryon density at midrapidity over the density produced by initial primary parton-parton scatterings. The PCM is able to describe the measured net-baryon density at RHIC.     

Universal scaling of the elliptic flow data at RHIC

Recent PHOBOS measurements of the excitation function for the pseudo-rapidity dependence of the elliptic flow in Au + Au collisions at RHIC have posed a significant theoretical challenge. Here we show that these differential measurements, as well as the RHIC measurements on transverse momentum satisfy a universal scaling relation predicted by the Buda-Lund model, based on exact solutions of perfect fluid hydrodynamics. We also show that the recently found transverse kinetic energy scaling of the elliptic flow is a special case of this universal scaling.     

First measurement of J/ψ anisotropy by PHENIX experiment at RHIC

Understanding the J/ψ suppression and possible recombination mechanisms at RHIC is one of the outstanding challenges for theorists and experimentalists. Recent results provided by PHENIX showed a stronger suppression at forward rapidity, while at mid-rapidity the suppression is similar to lower energy collision experiments. A large sample of Au + Au collisions at $ \sqrt {s_{NN} } $ \sqrt {s_{NN} } = 200 GeV was collected in 2007 with the PHENIX experiment at RHIC. Using this sample, J/ψs were identified in the di-electron decay channel. In order to probe the charm coalescence as an additional J/ψ production mechanism at RHIC, we studied the first determination of its v ₂ elliptic flow parameter at mid-rapidity.