Direct photon production at mid-rapidity in Pb–Pb collisions at sNN=2.76 TeV was studied in the transverse momentum range 0.9<pT<14 GeV/c. Photons were detected with the highly segmented ...electromagnetic calorimeter PHOS and via conversions in the ALICE detector material with the e+e− pair reconstructed in the central tracking system. The results of the two methods were combined and direct photon spectra were measured for the 0–20%, 20–40%, and 40–80% centrality classes. For all three classes, agreement was found with perturbative QCD calculations for pT≳5 GeV/c. Direct photon spectra down to pT≈1 GeV/c could be extracted for the 20–40% and 0–20% centrality classes. The significance of the direct photon signal for 0.9<pT<2.1 GeV/c is 2.6σ for the 0–20% class. The spectrum in this pT range and centrality class can be described by an exponential with an inverse slope parameter of (297±12stat±41syst) MeV. State-of-the-art models for photon production in heavy-ion collisions agree with the data within uncertainties.
The multi-strange baryon yields in Pbsingle bond Pb collisions have been shown to exhibit an enhancement relative to pp reactions. In this work, Xi and Omega production rates have been measured with ...the ALICE experiment as a function of transverse momentum, p sub(T)pT, in psingle bond Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of View the MathML source sNN=5.02 TeV. The results cover the kinematic ranges 0.6 GeV/c<p sub(T)<7.2 GeV/c0.6 GeV/c<pT<7.2 GeV/c and 0.8 GeV/c<p sub(T)<5 GeV/c0.8 GeV/c<pT<5 GeV/c, for Xi and Omega respectively, in the common rapidity interval -0.5<y sub(CMS)<0-0.5<yCMS<0. Multi-strange baryons have been identified by reconstructing their weak decays into charged particles. The p sub(T)pT spectra are analysed as a function of event charged-particle multiplicity, which in psingle bond Pb collisions ranges over one order of magnitude and lies between those observed in pp and Pbsingle bond Pb collisions. The measured p sub(T)pT distributions are compared to the expectations from a Blast-Wave model. The parameters which describe the production of lighter hadron species also describe the hyperon spectra in high multiplicity psingle bond Pb collisions. The yield of hyperons relative to charged pions is studied and compared with results from pp and Pbsingle bond Pb collisions. A continuous increase in the yield ratios as a function of multiplicity is observed in psingle bond Pb data, the values of which range from those measured in minimum bias pp to the ones in Pbsingle bond Pb collisions. A statistical model qualitatively describes this multiplicity dependence using a canonical suppression mechanism, in which the small volume causes a relative reduction of hadron production dependent on the strangeness content of the hyperon.
Comprehensive results on the production of unidentified charged particles, π±, K±, K$_S^0$, K*(892)0, $p, \bar{p}, ϕ$(1020), Λ, Λ, Ξ-, Ξ+, Ω-, and $\bar{Ω}^+$ hadrons in proton-proton ...(pp) collisions at $ \sqrt{s}$=7 TeV at midrapidity (|y|<0.5) as a function of charged-particle multiplicity density are presented. In order to avoid autocorrelation biases, the actual transverse momentum (pT) spectra of the particles under study and the event activity are measured in different rapidity windows. In the highest multiplicity class, the charged-particle density reaches about 3.5 times the value measured in inelastic collisions. While the yield of protons normalized to pions remains approximately constant as a function of multiplicity, the corresponding ratios of strange hadrons to pions show a significant enhancement that increases with increasing strangeness content. Furthermore, all identified particle-to-pion ratios are shown to depend solely on charged-particle multiplicity density, regardless of system type and collision energy. The evolution of the spectral shapes with multiplicity and hadron mass shows patterns that are similar to those observed in p-Pb and Pb-Pb collisions at Large Hadron Collider energies. The obtained pT distributions and yields are compared to expectations from QCD-based pp event generators as well as to predictions from thermal and hydrodynamic models. These comparisons indicate that traces of a collective, equilibrated system are already present in high-multiplicity pp collisions.
The azimuthal anisotropy coefficient v2 of prompt D0, D+, D∗+, and Ds+ mesons was measured in midcentral (30%-50% centrality class) Pb-Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair ...sNN=5.02 TeV, with the ALICE detector at the LHC. The D mesons were reconstructed via their hadronic decays at midrapidity, |y|
The prompt production of the charm baryon Λ+c and the Λ+c/D0 production ratios were measured at midrapidity with the ALICE detector in pp and p-Pb collisions at √sNN=5.02 TeV. These new measurements ...show a clear decrease of the Λ+c/D0 ratio with increasing transverse momentum (pT) in both collision systems in the range 2<pT<12 GeV/c, exhibiting similarities with the light-flavor baryon-to-meson ratios p/π and Λ/K0S. At low pT, predictions that include additional color-reconnection mechanisms beyond the leading-color approximation, assume the existence of additional higher-mass charm-baryon states, or include hadronization via coalescence can describe the data, while predictions driven by charm-quark fragmentation processes measured in e+e− and e−p collisions significantly underestimate the data. The results presented in this Letter provide significant evidence that the established assumption of universality (colliding-system independence) of parton-to-hadron fragmentation is not sufficient to describe charm-baryon production in hadronic collisions at LHC energies.
Invariant differential yields of deuterons and antideuterons in pp collisions at s = 0.9, 2.76 and 7 TeV and the yields of tritons, He3 nuclei, and their antinuclei at s = 7 TeV have been measured ...with the ALICE detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The measurements cover a wide transverse momentum (pT) range in the rapidity interval |y|
Recent pT-integrated cross-section measurements of the ground-state charm mesons and baryons, D0, D+, D+s, Λ+c, and Ξ0c, are used to evaluate the charm fragmentation fractions and production cross ...section per unit of rapidity at midrapidity (|y|<0.5), in pp collisions at √s=5.02 TeV at the LHC. The latter is dσc¯c/dy||y|<0.5=1165±44(stat)+134−101(syst) μb. These measurements were obtained for the first time in hadronic collisions at the LHC, including the charm baryon states, recently measured by ALICE at midrapidity. The charm fragmentation fractions differ significantly from the values measured in e+e− and ep collisions, providing evidence of the dependence of the parton-to-hadron fragmentation fractions on the collision system, indicating that the assumption of their universality is not supported by the measured cross sections. An increase of a factor of about 3.3 for the fragmentation fraction for the Λ+c with a significance of 5σ between the values obtained in pp collisions and those obtained in e+e− (ep) collisions is reported. The fragmentation fraction for the Ξ0c was obtained for the first time in any collision system. The measured fragmentation fractions were used to update the c¯c cross sections per unit of rapidity at |y|<0.5 at √s=2.76 and 7 TeV, which are about 40% higher than the previously published results. The data were compared with perturbative-QCD calculations and lie at the upper edge of the theoretical bands.
The elliptic, v2, triangular, v3, and quadrangular, v4, azimuthal anisotropic flow coefficients are measured for unidentified charged particles, pions, and (anti-)protons in Pb–Pb collisions at ...sNN=2.76 TeV with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Results obtained with the event plane and four-particle cumulant methods are reported for the pseudo-rapidity range |η|<0.8 at different collision centralities and as a function of transverse momentum, pT, out to pT=20 GeV/c. The observed non-zero elliptic and triangular flow depends only weakly on transverse momentum for pT>8 GeV/c. The small pT dependence of the difference between elliptic flow results obtained from the event plane and four-particle cumulant methods suggests a common origin of flow fluctuations up to pT=8 GeV/c. The magnitude of the (anti-)proton elliptic and triangular flow is larger than that of pions out to at least pT=8 GeV/c indicating that the particle type dependence persists out to high pT.
This work presents new constraints on the existence and the binding energy of a possible Λ–Λ bound state, the H-dibaryon, derived from Λ–Λ femtoscopic measurements by the ALICE collaboration. The ...results are obtained from a new measurement using the femtoscopy technique in ▪ collisions at s=13 TeV and p–Pb collisions at sNN=5.02 TeV, combined with previously published results from ▪ collisions at s=7 TeV. The Λ–Λ scattering parameter space, spanned by the inverse scattering length f0−1 and the effective range d0, is constrained by comparing the measured Λ–Λ correlation function with calculations obtained within the Lednický model. The data are compatible with hypernuclei results and lattice computations, both predicting a shallow attractive interaction, and permit to test different theoretical approaches describing the Λ–Λ interaction. The region in the (f0−1,d0) plane which would accommodate a Λ–Λ bound state is substantially restricted compared to previous studies. The binding energy of the possible Λ–Λ bound state is estimated within an effective-range expansion approach and is found to be BΛΛ=3.2−2.4+1.6(stat)−1.0+1.8(syst) MeV.
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