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Ali, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Ali, Y..

At least 37 records · Page 2

Dielectron production at midrapidity at low transverse momentum in peripheral and semi-peripheral Pb–Pb collisions at ${\sqrt{s}}_{\textrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV

The first measurement of the e + e – pair production at low lepton pair transverse momentum (p T,ee ) and low invariant mass (m ee ) in non-central Pb–Pb collisions at ${\sqrt{s}}_{\textrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV at the LHC is presented. The dielectron production is studied with the ALICE detector at midrapidity (|η e | < 0.8) as a function of invariant mass (0.4 ≤ m ee < 2.7 GeV/c 2 ) in the 50–70% and 70–90% centrality classes for p T,ee < 0.1 GeV/c, and as a function of p T,ee in three m ee intervals in the most peripheral Pb–Pb collisions. Below a p T,ee of 0.1 GeV/c, a clear excess of e + e – pairs is found compared to the expectations from known hadronic sources and predictions of thermal radiation from the medium. The m ee excess spectra are reproduced, within uncertainties, by different predictions of the photon–photon production of dielectrons, where the photons originate from the extremely strong electromagnetic fields generated by the highly Lorentz-contracted Pb nuclei. Lowest-order quantum electrodynamic (QED) calculations, as well as a model that takes into account the impact-parameter dependence of the average transverse momentum of the photons, also provide a good description of the p T,ee spectra. The measured $\sqrt{\left\langle {p}_{\textrm{T},\textrm{ee}}^2\right\rangle }$ of the excess p T,ee spectrum in peripheral Pb–Pb collisions is found to be comparable to the values observed previously at RHIC in a similar phase-space region.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Neutron emission in ultraperipheral Pb-Pb collisions at s N N = 5.02 TeV

In ultraperipheral collisions (UPCs) of relativistic nuclei without overlap of nuclear densities, the two nuclei are excited by the Lorentz-contracted Coulomb fields of their collision partners. In these UPCs, the typical nuclear excitation energy is below a few tens of MeV, and a small number of nucleons are emitted in electromagnetic dissociation (EMD) of primary nuclei, in contrast to complete nuclear fragmentation in hadronic interactions. The cross sections of emission of given numbers of neutrons in UPCs of 208 Pb nuclei at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$=5.02 TeV were measured with the neutron zero degree calorimeters (ZDCs) of the ALICE detector at the LHC, exploiting a similar technique to that used in previous studies performed at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$=2.76 TeV. In addition, the cross sections for the exclusive emission of one, two, three, four, and five forward neutrons in the EMD, not accompanied by the emission of forward protons, and thus mostly corresponding to the production of 207,206,205,204,203 Pb, respectively, were measured for the first time. The predictions from the available models describe the measured cross sections well. These cross sections can be used for evaluating the impact of secondary nuclei on the LHC components, in particular, on superconducting magnets, and also provide useful input for the design of the Future Circular Collider (FCC-hh).

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Anisotropic flow and flow fluctuations of identified hadrons in Pb–Pb collisions at $ \sqrt{s_{\textrm{NN}}}$ = 5.02 TeV

The first measurements of elliptic flow of π ± , K ± , p+$\bar{p}$, K$_{S}^{0}$, Λ+$\bar{Λ}$, $\phi$, Ξ – +$\barΞ$ + , and Ω – +$\barΩ$ + using multiparticle cumulants in Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$= 5.02 TeV are resented. Results obtained with two- (v 2 {2}) and four-particle cumulants (v 2 {4}) are shown as a function of transverse momentum, p T , for various collision centrality intervals. Combining the data for both v 2 {2} and v 2 {4} also allows us to report the first measurements of the mean elliptic flow, elliptic flow fluctuations, and relative elliptic flow fluctuations for various hadron species. These observables probe the event-by-event eccentricity fluctuations in the initial state and the contributions from the dynamic evolution of the expanding quark–gluon plasma. The characteristic features observed in previous p T -differential anisotropic flow measurements for identified hadrons with two-particle correlations, namely the mass ordering at low p T and the approximate scaling with the number of constituent quarks at intermediate p T , are similarly present in the four-particle correlations and the combinations of v 2 {2} and v 2 {4}. In addition, a particle species dependence of flow fluctuations is observed that could indicate a significant contribution from final state hadronic interactions. The comparison between experimental measurements and CoLBT model calculations, which combine the various physics processes of hydrodynamics, quark coalescence, and jet fragmentation, illustrates their importance over a wide p T range.

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Measurements of the groomed jet radius and momentum splitting fraction with the soft drop and dynamical grooming algorithms in pp collisions at $ \sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 TeV

This article presents measurements of the groomed jet radius and momentum splitting fraction in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 TeV with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Inclusive charged-particle jets are reconstructed at midrapidity using the anti-k T algorithm for transverse momentum 60 < p$_{T}^{ch jet}$ < 80 GeV/c. We report results using two different grooming algorithms: soft drop and, for the first time, dynamical grooming. For each grooming algorithm, a variety of grooming settings are used in order to explore the impact of collinear radiation on these jet substructure observables. These results are compared to perturbative calculations that include resummation of large logarithms at all orders in the strong coupling constant. We find good agreement of the theoretical predictions with the data for all grooming settings considered.

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Measurement of inclusive and leading subjet fragmentation in pp and Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV

This article presents new measurements of the fragmentation properties of jets in both proton–proton (pp) and heavy-ion collisions with the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). We report distributions of the fraction $z_r$ of transverse momentum carried by subjets of radius $r$ within jets of radius $R$. Charged-particle jets are reconstructed at midrapidity using the anti-$k_T$ algorithm with jet radius $R$ = 0.4, and subjets are reconstructed by reclustering the jet constituents using the anti-$k_T$ algorithm with radii $r$ = 0.1 and $r$ = 0.2. In proton–proton collisions, we measure both the inclusive and leading subjet distributions. We compare these measurements to perturbative calculations at next-to-leading logarithmic accuracy, which suggest a large impact of threshold resummation and hadronization effects on the $z_r$ distribution. In heavy-ion collisions, we measure the leading subjet distributions, which allow access to a region of harder jet frag- mentation than has been probed by previous measurements of jet quenching via hadron fragmentation distributions. The $z_r$ distributions enable extraction of the parton-to-subjet fragmentation function and allow for tests of the universality of jet fragmentation functions in the quark–gluon plasma (QGP). We find no significant modification of $z_r$ distributions in Pb–Pb compared to pp collisions. However, the distributions are also consistent with a hardening trend for $z_r$ < 0.95, as predicted by several jet quenching models. As $z_r$ → 1 our results indicate that any such hardening effects cease, exposing qualitatively new possibilities to disentangle competing jet quenching mechanisms. By comparing our results to theoretical calculations based on an independent extraction of the parton-to-jet fragmentation function, we find consistency with the universality of jet fragmentation and no indication of factorization breaking in the QGP.

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Observation of flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{S_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV at the CERN Large Hadron Collider

This Letter reports on the first measurements of transverse momentum dependent flow angle Ψ n and flow magnitude v n fluctuations determined using new four-particle correlators. The measurements are performed for various centralities in Pb–Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of $\sqrt{S_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV with ALICE at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Both flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations are observed in the presented centrality ranges and are strongest in the most central collisions and for a transverse momentum p T > 2 GeV / c. Comparison with theoretical models, including iEBE-VISHNU, MUSIC, and AMPT, show that the measurements exhibit unique sensitivities to the initial state of heavy-ion collisions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

W ± -boson production in p–Pb collisions at $ \sqrt{s_{\textrm{NN}}} $ = 8.16 TeV and Pb–Pb collisions at $ \sqrt{s_{\textrm{NN}}} $ = 5.02 TeV

The production of the W ± bosons measured in p–Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon–nucleon collision $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 8.16 TeV and Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV with ALICE at the LHC is presented. The W ± bosons are measured via their muonic decay channel, with the muon reconstructed in the pseudorapidity region -4 < η$_{lab}^{μ}$ < -2.5 with transverse momentum p$_{T}^{μ}$ > 10 GeV/c. While in Pb–Pb collisions the measurements are performed in the forward (2.5 < y$_{cms}^{μ}$ < 4) rapidity region, in p–Pb collisions, where the centre-of-mass frame is boosted with respect to the laboratory frame, the measurements are performed in the backward (-4.46 < y$_{cms}^{μ}$ < -2.96) and forward (2.03 < y$_{cms}^{μ}$ < 3.53) rapidity regions. The W - and W + production cross sections, lepton-charge asymmetry, and nuclear modification factors are evaluated as a function of the muon rapidity. In order to study the production as a function of the p–Pb collision centrality, the production cross sections of the W - and W + bosons are combined and normalised to the average number of binary nucleon–nucleon collision $\langle$N coll $\rangle$. In Pb–Pb collisions, the same measurements are presented as a function of the collision centrality. Study of the binary scaling of the W ± -boson cross sections in p–Pb and Pb–Pb collisions is also reported. The results are compared with perturbative QCD calculations, with and without nuclear modifications of the Parton Distribution Functions (PDFs), as well as with available data at the LHC. Significant deviations from the theory expectations are found in the two collision systems, indicating that the measurements can provide additional constraints for the determination of nuclear PDFs and in particular of the light-quark distributions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

$\Sigma (1385)^{\pm }$ resonance production in Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\textrm{NN}}} = 5.02$ TeV

Hadronic resonances are used to probe the hadron gas produced in the late stage of heavy-ion collisions since they decay on the same timescale, of the order of 1–10 fm/c, as the decoupling time of the system. In the hadron gas, (pseudo)elastic scatterings among the products of resonances that decayed before the kinetic freeze-out and regeneration processes counteract each other, the net effect depending on the resonance lifetime, the duration of the hadronic phase, and the hadronic cross sections at play. In this context, the Σ(1385) ± particle is of particular interest as models predict that regeneration dominates over rescattering despite its relatively short lifetime of about 5.5 fm/c. The first measurement of the Σ(1385) ± resonance production at midrapidity in Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$=5.02 TeV with the ALICE detector is presented in this Letter. The resonances are reconstructed via their hadronic decay channel, Λπ, as a function of the transverse momentum (p T ) and the collision centrality. The results are discussed in comparison with the measured yield of pions and with expectations from the statistical hadronization model as well as commonly employed event generators, including PYTHIA8/Angantyr and EPOS3 coupled to the UrQMD hadronic cascade afterburner. None of the models can describe the data. For Σ(1385) ± , a similar behaviour as K*(892) 0 is observed in data unlike the predictions of EPOS3 with afterburner.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Constraining the $\overline{K}$N coupled channel dynamics using femtoscopic correlations at the LHC

The interaction of K – with protons is characterised by the presence of several coupled channels, systems like $\overline{K}$ 0 n and πΣ with a similar mass and the same quantum numbers as the K – p state. The strengths of these couplings to the K – p system are of crucial importance for the understanding of the nature of the Λ(1405) resonance and of the attractive K – p strong interaction. In this article, we present measurements of the K – p correlation functions in relative momentum space obtained in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$=13 Te, in p–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$= 5.02 Te, and (semi)peripheral Pb–Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$= 5.02 Te. The emitting source size, composed of a core radius anchored to the K + p correlation and of a resonance halo specific to each particle pair, varies between 1 and 2 fm in these collision systems. The strength and the effects of the $\overline{K}$ 0 n and πΣ inelastic channels on the measured K – p correlation function are investigated in the different colliding systems by comparing the data with state-of-the-art models of chiral potentials. A novel approach to determine the conversion weights ω, necessary to quantify the amount of produced inelastic channels in the correlation function, is presented. In this method, particle yields are estimated from thermal model predictions, and their kinematic distribution from blast-wave fits to measured data. The comparison of chiral potentials to the measured K – p interaction indicates that, while the πΣ –K – p dynamics is well reproduced by the model, the coupling to the $\overline{K}$ 0 n channel in the model is currently underestimated.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Constraining hadronization mechanisms with Λ c + / D 0 production ratios in Pb–Pb collisions at s NN = 5.02 TeV

The production of prompt $\ Λ^{+}_{c}$ baryons at midrapidity (|y|<0.5) was measured in central (0–10%) and mid-central (30–50%) Pb–Pb collisions at the center-of-mass energy per nucleon–nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ TeV with the ALICE detector. The results are more precise, more differential in centrality, and reach much lower transverse momentum (p T =1 GeV/c) with respect to previous measurements performed by the ALICE, STAR, and CMS Collaborations in nucleus–nucleus collisions, allowing for an extrapolation down to p T =0. The p T -differential $\ Λ^{+}_{c}$/D 0 ratio is enhanced with respect to the pp measurement for 4 < p T < 8 GeV/c by 3.7 standard deviations (σ), while the p T -integrated ratios are compatible within 1σ. The observed trend is similar to that observed in the strange sector for the Λ/$\ K^{0}_{S}$ ratio. Model calculations including coalescence or statistical hadronization for charm-hadron formation are compared with the data.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

System-size dependence of the charged-particle pseudorapidity density at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV for pp, p–Pb, and Pb–Pb collisions

We present the first systematic comparison of the charged-particle pseudorapidity densities for three widely different collision systems, pp, p–Pb, and Pb–Pb, at the top energy of the Large Hadron Collider ($\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV) measured over a wide pseudorapidity range (-3.5 < η < 5), the widest possible among the four experiments at that facility. The systematic uncertainties are minimised since the measurements are recorded by the same experimental apparatus (ALICE). The distributions for p–Pb and Pb–Pb collisions are determined as a function of the centrality of the collisions, while results from pp collisions are reported for inelastic events with at least one charged particle at midrapidity. The charged-particle pseudorapidity densities are, under simple and robust assumptions, transformed to charged-particle rapidity densities. This allows for the calculation and the presentation of the evolution of the width of the rapidity distributions and of a lower bound on the Bjorken energy density, as a function of the number of participants in all three collision systems. We find a decreasing width of the particle production, and roughly a smooth ten fold increase in the energy density, as the system size grows, which is consistent with a gradually higher dense phase of matter

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Inclusive quarkonium production in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 TeV

This article reports on the inclusive production cross section of several quarkonium states, J/ψ, ψ(2S), $\mathcal{Υ}$(1S), $\mathcal{Υ}$(2S), and $\mathcal{Υ}$(3S), measured with the ALICE detector at the LHC, in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$=5.02 TeV. The analysis is performed in the dimuon decay channel at forward rapidity ( 2.5 < y < 4). The integrated cross sections and transverse-momentum (p T ) and rapidity (y) differential cross sections for J/ψ, ψ(2S), $\mathcal{Υ}$(1S), and the ψ(2S) -to-J/ψ cross section ratios are presented. The integrated cross sections, assuming unpolarized quarkonia, are: σ J/ψ (p T <20 GeV/c) = 5.88 ± 0.03 ± 0.34 μb, σ ψ(2S) (p T <12 GeV/c) = 0.87 ± 0.06 ± 0.10 μb, σ Υ(1S) (p T <15 GeV/c) = 45.5 ± 3.9 ± 3.5 nb, σ Υ(2S) (p T <15 GeV/c) = 22.4 ± 3.2 ± 2.7 nb, and σ Υ(3S) (p T <15 GeV/c) = 4.9 ± 2.2 ± 1.0 nb, where the first (second) uncertainty is the statistical (systematic) one. For the first time, the cross sections of the three $\mathcal{Υ}$ states, as well as the ψ(2S) one as a function of p T and y , are measured at $\sqrt{s}$=5.02 TeV at forward rapidity. These measurements also significantly extend the J/ψ p T reach and supersede previously published results. A comparison with ALICE measurements in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$=2.76, 7, 8, and 13 TeV is presented and the energy dependence of quarkonium production cross sections is discussed. Finally, the results are compared with the predictions from several production models.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Measurement of beauty production via non-prompt D 0 mesons in Pb-Pb collisions at $ \sqrt{{\textrm{s}}_{\textrm{NN}}} $ = 5.02 TeV

The production of non-prompt D 0 mesons from beauty-hadron decays was measured at midrapidity (|y| < 0.5) in Pb-Pb collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$= 5.02 TeV with the ALICE experiment at the LHC. Their nuclear modification factor (R AA ), measured for the first time down to p T = 1 GeV/c in the 0–10% and 30–50% centrality classes, indicates a significant suppression, up to a factor of about three, for p T > 5 GeV/c in the 0–10% central Pb-Pb collisions. The data are described by models that include both collisional and radiative processes in the calculation of beauty-quark energy loss in the quark-gluon plasma, and quark recombination in addition to fragmentation as a hadronisation mechanism. The ratio of the non-prompt to prompt D 0 -meson R AA is larger than unity for p T > 4 GeV/c in the 0–10% central Pb-Pb collisions, as predicted by models in which beauty quarks lose less energy than charm quarks in the quark-gluon plasma because of their larger mass.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Measurement of anti- 3 He nuclei absorption in matter and impact on their propagation in the Galaxy

In our Galaxy, light antinuclei composed of antiprotons and antineutrons can be produced through high-energy cosmic-ray collisions with the interstellar medium or could also originate from the annihilation of dark-matter particles that have not yet been discovered. On Earth, the only way to produce and study antinuclei with high precision is to create them at high-energy particle accelerators. Although the properties of elementary antiparticles have been studied in detail, the knowledge of the interaction of light antinuclei with matter is limited. We determine the disappearance probability of 3 $\overline{He}$ when it encounters matter particles and annihilates or disintegrates within the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. We extract the inelastic interaction cross section, which is then used as an input to the calculations of the transparency of our Galaxy to the propagation of 3 $\overline{He}$ stemming from dark-matter annihilation and cosmic-ray interactions within the interstellar medium. For a specific dark-matter profile, we estimate a transparency of about 50%, whereas it varies with increasing 3 $\overline{He}$ momentum from 25% to 90% for cosmic-ray sources. The results indicate that 3 $\overline{He}$ nuclei can travel long distances in the Galaxy, and can be used to study cosmic-ray interactions and dark-matter annihilation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Closing in on critical net-baryon fluctuations at LHC energies: Cumulants up to third order in Pb–Pb collisions

Fluctuation measurements are important sources of information on the mechanism of particle production at LHC energies. This article reports the first experimental results on third-order cumulants of the net-proton distributions in Pb–Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV recorded by the ALICE detector. The results on the second-order cumulants of net-proton distributions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 2.76 and 5.02 TeV are also discussed in view of effects due to the global and local baryon number conservation. The results demonstrate the presence of long-range rapidity correlations between protons and antiprotons. Such correlations originate from the early phase of the collision. The experimental results are compared with HIJING and EPOS model calculations, and the dependence of the fluctuation measurements on the phase-space coverage is examined in the context of lattice quantum chromodynamics (LQCD) and hadron resonance gas (HRG) model estimations. The measured third-order cumulants are consistent with zero within experimental uncertainties of about 4% and are described well by LQCD and HRG predictions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Elliptic flow of charged particles at midrapidity relative to the spectator plane in Pb–Pb and Xe–Xe collisions

Measurements of the elliptic flow coefficient relative to the collision plane defined by the spectator neutrons v 2 {$Ψ_{SP}$} in collisions of Pb ions at center-of-mass energy per nucleon–nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=$ 2.76 TeV and Xe ions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=$ 5.44 TeV are reported. The results are presented for charged particles produced at midrapidity as a function of centrality and transverse momentum for the 5–70% and 0.2–6 GeV/c ranges, respectively. The ratio between v 2 {$Ψ_{SP}$} and the elliptic flow coefficient relative to the participant plane v 2 {4}, estimated using four-particle correlations, deviates by up to 20% from unity depending on centrality. This observation differs strongly from the magnitude of the corresponding eccentricity ratios predicted by the T R ENTo and the elliptic power models of initial state fluctuations that are tuned to describe the participant plane anisotropies. The differences can be interpreted as a decorrelation of the neutron spectator plane and the reaction plane because of fragmentation of the remnants from the colliding nuclei, which points to an incompleteness of current models describing the initial state fluctuations. A significant transverse momentum dependence of the ratio v 2 {$Ψ_{SP}$} /v 2 {4} is observed in all but the most central collisions, which may help to understand whether momentum anisotropies at low and intermediate transverse momentum have a common origin in initial state fluctuations. The ratios of v 2 {$Ψ_{SP}$} and v 2 {4} to the corresponding initial state eccentricities for Xe–Xe and Pb–Pb collisions at similar initial entropy density show a difference of (7.0 ± 0.9)% with an additional variation of +1.8% when including RHIC data in the T R ENTo parameter extraction. These observations provide new experimental constraints for viscous effects in the hydrodynamic modeling of the expanding quark–gluon plasma produced in heavy-ion collisions at the LHC.

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