The PHENIX experiment has measured the spin alignment for inclusive J=ψ → e+e− decays in protonproton collisions at √s = 510 GeV at midrapidity. The angular distributions have been measured in three ...different polarization frames, and the three decay angular coefficients have been extracted in a full two-dimensional analysis. Previously, PHENIX saw large longitudinal net polarization at forward rapidity at the same collision energy. This analysis at midrapidity, complementary to the previous PHENIX results, sees no sizable polarization in the measured transverse momentum range of 0.0 < pT < 10.0 GeV=c. The results are consistent with a previous one-dimensional analysis at midrapidity at √s = 200 GeV. The transverse-momentum-dependent cross section for midrapidity J=ψ production has additionally been measured, and after comparison to world data, a simple logarithmic dependence of the cross section on √s was found.
We report on the first measurement of the triangular v3, quadrangular v4, and pentagonal v5 charged particle flow in Pb-Pb collisions at √SNN = 2.76 TeV measured with the ALICE detector at the CERN ...Large Hadron Collider. We show that the triangular flow can be described in terms of the initial spatial anisotropy and its fluctuations, which provides strong constraints on its origin. In the most central events, where the elliptic flow v2 and v3 have similar magnitude, a double peaked structure in the two-particle azimuthal correlations is observed, which is often interpreted as a Mach cone response to fast partons. Here, we show that this structure can be naturally explained from the measured anisotropic flow Fourier coefficients.
Here, we present a detailed measurement of charged two-pion correlation functions in 0–30% centrality √sNN = 200 GeV Au + Au collisions by the PHENIX experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion ...Collider. The data are well described by Bose-Einstein correlation functions stemming from Lévy-stable source distributions. Using a fine transverse momentum binning, we extract the correlation strength parameter λ, the Lévy index of stability α, and the Lévy length scale parameter R as a function of average transverse mass of the pair mT. We find that the positively and the negatively charged pion pairs yield consistent results, and their correlation functions are represented, within uncertainties, by the same Lévy-stable source functions. The λ(mT) measurements indicate a decrease of the strength of the correlations at low mT. The Lévy length scale parameter R(mT) decreases with increasing mT, following a hydrodynamically predicted type of scaling behavior. The values of the Lévy index of stability α are found to be significantly lower than the Gaussian case of α = 2, but also significantly larger than the conjectured value that may characterize the critical point of a second-order quark-hadron phase transition.
PHENIX reports differential cross sections of μμ pairs from semileptonic heavy-flavor decays and the Drell-Yan production mechanism measured in p+p collisions at s=200 GeV at forward and backward ...rapidity (1.2<|η|<2.2). The μμ pairs from cc¯, bb¯, and Drell-Yan are separated using a template fit to unlike- and like-sign muon pair spectra in mass and pT. The azimuthal opening angle correlation between the muons from cc¯ and bb¯ decays and the pair-pT distributions are compared to distributions generated using PYTHIA and POWHEG models, which both include next-to-leading order processes. The measured distributions for pairs from cc¯ are consistent with PYTHIA calculations. The cc¯ data present narrower azimuthal correlations and softer pT distributions compared to distributions generated from POWHEG. The bb¯ data are well described by both models. The extrapolated total cross section for bottom production is 3.75±0.24(stat)±0.500.35(syst)±0.45(global) μb, which is consistent with previous measurements at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider in the same system at the same collision energy and is approximately a factor of 2 higher than the central value calculated with theoretical models. The measured Drell-Yan cross section is in good agreement with next-to-leading-order quantum-chromodynamics calculations.
Angular correlations between unidentified charged trigger particles and various species of charged associated particles (unidentified particles, pions, kaons, protons and antiprotons) are measured by ...the ALICE detector in p-Pb collisions at a nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energy of 5.02 TeV in the transverse-momentum range 0.3 < p(T) < 4 GeV/c. The correlations expressed as associated yield per trigger particle are obtained in the pseudorapidity range vertical bar n(lab)vertical bar < 0.8. Fourier coefficients are extracted from the long-range correlations projected onto the azimuthal angle difference and studied as a function of p(T) and in intervals of event multiplicity. In high-multiplicity events, the second-order coefficient for protons, 4, is observed to be smaller than that for pions, v(2)(pi), up to about p(T) = 2 GeV/c. To reduce correlations due to jets, the per-trigger yield measured in low-multiplicity events is subtracted from that in high-multiplicity events. A two-ridge structure is obtained for all particle species. The Fourier decomposition of this structure shows that the second-order coefficients for pions and kaons are similar. The v(2)(p) is found to be smaller at low P-T and larger at higher p(T) than v(2)(pi), with a crossing occurring at about 2 GeV/c. This is qualitatively similar to the elliptic-flow pattern observed in heavy-ion collisions. A mass ordering effect at low transverse momenta is consistent with expectations from hydrodynamic model calculations assuming a collectively expanding system. (C) 2013 CERN. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
We present measurements of long-range angular correlations and the transverse momentum dependence of elliptic flow v2 in high-multiplicity p + Au collisions at √ sNN = 200 GeV. A comparison of these ...results to previous measurements in high-multiplicity d + Au and 3He+Au collisions demonstrates a relation between v2 and the initial collision eccentricity ε2, suggesting that the observed momentum-space azimuthal anisotropies in these small systems have a collective origin and reflect the initial geometry. Good agreement is observed between the measured v2 and hydrodynamic calculations for all systems, and an argument disfavoring theoretical explanations based on initial momentum-space domain correlations is presented. The set of measurements presented here allows us to leverage the distinct intrinsic geometry of each of these systems to distinguish between different theoretical descriptions of the long-range correlations observed in small collision systems.
We present measurements of the elliptic flow (v2) as a function of transverse momentum (pT), pseudorapidity (η), and centrality in d+Au collisions at √sNN = 200, 62.4, 39, and 19.6 GeV. The ...beam-energy scan of d+Au collisions provides a testing ground for the onset of ow signatures in small collision systems. We measure a nonzero v2 signal at all four collision energies, which, at midrapidity and low pT, is consistent with predictions from viscous hydrodynamic models. Comparisons with calculations from parton transport models (based on the ampt Monte Carlo generator) show good agreement with the data at midrapidity to forward (d-going) rapidities and low pT. At backward (Au-going) rapidities and pT > 1:5 GeV/c, the data diverges from ampt calculations of v2 relative to the initial geometry, indicating the possible dominance of nongeometry related corre- lations, referred to as nonflow. We also present measurements of the charged-particle multiplicity (dNch/d ) as a function of η in central d+Au collisions at the same energies. We find that in d+Au collisions at √sNN = 200 GeV the v2 scales with dNch/d over all in the PHENIX acceptance. At √sNN = 62:4, and 39 GeV, v2 scales with dNch/d at midrapidity and forward rapidity, but falls o at backward rapidity. Furthermore, this departure from the dNch/dη scaling may be a further indication of non ow effects dominating at backward rapidity.