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At least 271 records · Page 15

Heavy and light flavor jet quenching in heavy-ion collisions in a perturbative QCD approach

In this work, we study the flavor dependence of jet quenching in heavy-ion collisions. A next-to-leading-order perturbative QCD framework is applied to account for both quark and gluon contributions to light and heavy flavor hadron productions. A linear Boltzmann transport model coupled to hydrodynamic simulation is utilized to study the nuclear modification of heavy and light flavor jets in the dynamically evolving quark-gluon plasma. Within our jet quenching framework, we obtain a nice description of the nuclear modification factors of charged hadrons, D mesons, B mesons and B–decayed D mesons over a wide range of transverse momentum (8-300 GeV). Our result shows that perturbative QCD is sufficient to explain the color, mass and energy dependence of parton energy loss and jet quenching in heavy-ion collisions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Search for pair-production of vector-like quarks in lepton+jets final states containing at least one b -tagged jet using the Run 2 data from the ATLAS experiment

A search is presented for the pair-production of heavy vector-like quarks in the lepton+jets final state using 140 fb -1 of proton–proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector. The search is optimised for vector-like top-quarks (T) that decay into a W boson and a b-quark, with one W boson decaying leptonically and the other hadronically. Other vector-like quark flavours and decay modes are also considered. Events are selected with one high transverse-momentum electron or muon, large missing transverse momentum, a large-radius jet identified as a W boson, and multiple small-radius jets, at least one of which is b-tagged. Vector-like T-quarks with 100% branching ratio to Wb are excluded at 95% CL for masses below 1700 GeV. These limits are also applied to vector-like Y-quarks, which decay exclusively into a W boson and a b-quark. Isospin singlets with B(T→Wb:Ht:Zt)=1/2:1/4:1/4 are excluded for masses below 1360 GeV.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Exotic hidden-heavy hadrons and where to find them

The Born-Oppenheimer potentials for QCD with light quarks include adjoint-hadron potentials that are repulsive at short distances and heavy-hadron-pair potentials that approach thresholds at large distances. The adjoint-hadron potentials must connect smoothly to the heavy-hadron-pair potentials at intermediate distances. We identify exotic hidden-heavy hadrons as bound states and resonances in adjoint-hadron potentials that cross below a heavy-hadron-pair threshold before approaching it. This explains why many exotic hidden-charm and hidden-bottom hadrons have energies near heavy-hadron-pair thresholds. The remarkable properties of some exotic hidden-heavy mesons can be explained by fine tunings of adjoint-meson energies in QCD.

Born-Oppenheimer approximation↗

Hydrodynamic description of D meson production in high-energy heavy-ion collisions *

The large values and constituent-quark-number scaling of the elliptic flow of low-p T D mesons imply that charm quarks, initially produced through hard processes, might be partially thermalized through strong interactions with quark-gluon plasma (QGP) in high-energy heavy-ion collisions. To quantify the degree of thermalization of low-p T charm quarks, we compare the D 0 meson spectra and elliptic flow from a hydrodynamic model to experimental data as well as transport model simulations. We use an effective charm chemical potential at the freeze-out temperature to account for the initial charm quark production from hard processes and assume that they are thermalized in the local comoving frame of the medium before freeze-out. D 0 mesons are sampled statistically from the freeze-out hyper-surface of the expanding QGP as described by the event-by-event (3+1)D viscous hydrodynamic model CLVisc. Both the hydrodynamic and transport models can describe the elliptic flow of D 0 mesons at P T < 3 GeV/c as measured in Au+Au collisions at $sqrts_{NN} = 200$ GeV. Though the experimental data on spectra are consistent with the hydrodynamic result at small p T ~ 1 GeV/c, they deviate from the hydrodynamic model at high transverse momentum, GeV/c. The diffusion and parton energy loss mechanisms in the transport model can describe the measured spectra reasonably well within the theoretical uncertainty. Finally, our comparative study indicates that charm quarks only approach local thermal equilibrium at small p T , even though they acquire sizable elliptic flow comparable to light-quark hadrons at both small and intermediate p T .

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

LHC probes of the 10 TeV scale

The usual range of new particle masses, up to a few TeV, searched for at the LHC may be substantially extended if ultraheavy diquark particles exist. A diquark scalar, $S_{uu}$, that interacts perturbatively with two up quarks may be as heavy as 10 TeV and would still produce tens of spectacular events at the 14 TeV LHC. It is shown here that an ultraheavy $S_{uu}$ could be discovered through final states of very high energy in various channels, especially if the diquark can decay into other new heavy particles. Examples include cascade decays of $S_{uu}$ via a second scalar produced in pairs, which leads to two dijet resonances, or to more exotic signals with top quarks, Higgs bosons, electroweak bosons, and high-$p_T$ jets. Another possibility is that the diquark decays into a vectorlike quark of multi-TeV mass and a top or up quark. Signal events include one or two highly boosted top quarks and a Higgs boson or a $Z$, without counterparts containing top antiquarks. Similarly, direct decays of the diquark into $tj$ or $tt$ with leptonic top decays involve only positively charged leptons.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Viscosities of the Baryon-Rich Quark-Gluon Plasma from Beam Energy Scan Data

Here, this work presents the first Bayesian inference study of the (3 + 1)D dynamics of relativistic heavy-ion collisions and quark-gluon plasma viscosities using an event-by-event (3 + 1)D hydrodynamics + hadronic transport theoretical framework and data from the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider Beam energy scan program. Robust constraints on initial state nuclear stopping and the baryon chemical potential-dependent shear viscosity of the produced quantum chromodynamic (QCD) matter are obtained. The specific bulk viscosity of the QCD matter is found to exhibit a preferred maximum around $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 19.6 GeV . This result allows for the alternative interpretation of a reduction (and/or increase) of the speed of sound relative to that of the employed lattice-QCD based equation of state for net baryon chemical potential μ B ~0.2(0.4) GeV .

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Elliptic flow splittings in the Polyakov–Nambu–Jona-Lasinio transport model

To incorporate the effect of gluons on the evolution dynamics of the quark matter produced in relativistic heavy-ion collisions, we extend the three-flavor Nambu–Jona-Lasinio (NJL) transport model to include the contribution from the Polyakov loops. Imbedding the resulting pNJL partonic transport model in an extended multiphase transport (extended AMPT) model, we then study the elliptic flow splittings between particles and their antiparticles in relativistic heavy-ion collisions at beam energy scan energies. We find that a weak quark vector interaction in the partonic phase is able to describe the elliptic flow splitting between protons and antiprotons in heavy-ion collisions at √sNN=7.7 to 39 GeV. Knowledge of the quark vector interaction is useful for understanding the equation of state of quark matter at large baryon chemical potentials and thus the location of the critical point in the QCD phase diagram.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Search for heavy pseudoscalar and scalar bosons decaying to a top quark pair in proton–proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV

A search for pseudoscalar or scalar bosons decaying to a top quark pair ($\textrm{t}$$\bar{\textrm{t}}$) in final states with one or two charged leptons is presented. The analyzed proton–proton collision data was recorded at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb -1 . The invariant mass $m_{{\textrm{t}}{\bar{\textrm{t}}}}$ of the reconstructed $\textrm{t}$$\bar{\textrm{t}}$ system and variables sensitive to its spin and parity are used to discriminate against the standard model background. Interference between pseudoscalar or scalar boson production and the standard model $\textrm{t}$$\bar{\textrm{t}}$ continuum is included, leading to peak-dip structures in the $m_{{\textrm{t}}{\bar{\textrm{t}}}}$ distribution. An excess of the data above the background prediction, based on perturbative quantum chromodynamics (QCD) calculations, is observed near the kinematic $\textrm{t}$$\bar{\textrm{t}}$ production threshold, while good agreement is found for high $m_{{\textrm{t}}{\bar{\textrm{t}}}}$. The data are consistent with the background prediction if the contribution from a simplified model of a color-singlet $^1\textrm{S}^{|1|}_0$ ${{\textrm{t}}{\bar{\textrm{t}}}}$ quasi-bound state $η_{\textrm{t}}$, inspired by nonrelativistic QCD, is added. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set on the coupling between the pseudoscalar or scalar bosons and the top quark for boson masses in the range 365–1000 GeV, relative widths between 0.5% and 25%, and two background scenarios with or without $η_{\textrm{t}}$ contribution.

CMS↗

Large N-ightmare dark matter

A dark QCD sector is a relatively minimal extension of the Standard Model (SM) that admits Dark Matter (DM) candidates, but requires no portal to the visible sector beyond gravitational interactions: a "nightmare scenario" for DM detection. Here, we consider a secluded dark sector containing a single flavor of light, vector-like dark quark gauged under (N). In the large-N limit, this single-flavor theory becomes highly predictive, generating two DM candidates whose masses and dynamics are described by few parameters: a light quark-antiquark bound state, the dark analog of the η' meson, and a heavy bound state of N quarks, the dark analog of the Δ ++ baryon. We show that the latter may freeze-in with an abundance independent of the confinement scale, forming DM-like relics for N ≲ 10, while the former may generate DM via cannibalization and freeze-out. We study the interplay of this two-component DM system, and determine the characteristic ranges of the confinement scale, dark-visible sector temperature ratio, and N that admit non-excluded DM, once effects of self-interaction constraints and bounds on effective degrees of freedom at the BBN and CMB epochs are included.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Heavy flavor dynamics across system size at the LHC

One of the fundamental signatures of the Quark Gluon Plasma has been the suppression of heavy flavor (specifically D mesons), which has been measured via the nuclear modification factor, R AA and azimuthal anisotropies, v n , in large systems. However, multiple competing models can reproduce the same data for R AA to v n . In this talk we break down the competing effects that conspire together to successfully reproduce R AA and v n in experimental data using Trento+v-USPhydro+DAB-MOD. Then using our best fit model we make predictions for R AA and v n across system size for 208 PbPb, 129 XeXe, 40 ArAr, and 16 OO collisions. We find that 0–10% centrality has a non-trivial interplay between the system size and eccentricities such that system size effects are masked in v 2 whereas in 30–50% centrality the eccentricities are approximately constant across system size and, therefore, is a better centrality class to study D meson dynamics across system size.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Strong Constraints on Jet Quenching in Centrality-Dependent p + Pb Collisions at 5.02 TeV from ATLAS

Jet quenching is the process of color-charged partons losing energy via interactions with quark-gluon plasma droplets created in heavy-ion collisions. The collective expansion of such droplets is well described by viscous hydrodynamics. Similar evidence of collectivity is consistently observed in smaller collision systems, including p p and p + Pb collisions. In contrast, while jet quenching is observed in Pb + Pb collisions, no evidence has been found in these small systems to date, raising fundamental questions about the nature of the system created in these collisions. The ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider has measured the yield of charged hadrons correlated with reconstructed jets in 0.36 nb -1 of p + Pb and 3.6 pb -1 of pp collisions at 5.02 TeV. The yields of charged hadrons with ${p}^{ch}_{T}$ > 0.5 GeV near and opposite in azimuth to jets with ${p}^{jet}_{T}$ > 30 or 60 GeV, and the ratios of these yields between p + Pb and pp collisions, I pPb , are reported. The collision centrality of p + Pb events is categorized by the energy deposited by forward neutrons from the struck nucleus. The I pPb values are consistent with unity within a few percent for hadrons with ${p}^{ch}_{T}$ > 4 GeV at all centralities. These data provide new, strong constraints that preclude almost any parton energy loss in central p + Pb collisions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Relaxation time for strange quark spin in rotating quark-gluon plasma

Experiments at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider have measured the net polarization of $\Lambda$ and $\bar{Λ }$ hyperons and attributed it to a coupling between their spin and the vorticity of the fluid created in heavy-ion collisions. Equipartition of energy is generally assumed, but the dynamical mechanism which polarizes them has yet to be determined. We consider two such mechanisms: vorticity fluctuations and helicity flip in scatterings between strange quarks and light quarks and gluons. With reasonable parameters both mechanisms lead to equilibration times orders of magnitude too large to be relevant to heavy-ion collisions. In this work our conclusion is that strange quark spin or helicity is unchanged from the time they are created to the time they hadronize. A corollary is that vorticity fluctuations do not affect the hyperon spin, either.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Differential Measurements of Jet Substructure and Partonic Energy Loss in Au+Au Collisions at √ sNN = 200 GeV

The STAR collaboration presents jet substructure measurements related to both the momentum fraction and the opening angle within jets in p+p and Au+Au collisions at √sNN =200GeV. The substructure observables include SoftDrop groomed momentum fraction (zg), groomed jet radius (Rg), and subjet momentum fraction (zSJ) and opening angle (θSJ). The latter observable is introduced for the first time. Fully corrected subjet measurements are presented for p+p collisions and are compared to leading-order Monte Carlo models. The subjet θSJ distributions reflect the jets leading opening angle and are utilized as a proxy for the resolution scale of the medium in Au+Au collisions. We compare data from Au+Au collisions to those from p+p which are embedded in minimum-bias Au+Au events in order to include the effects of detector smearing and the heavy-ion collision underlying event. The subjet observables are shown to be more robust to the background than zg and Rg. We observe no significant modifications of the subjet observables within the two highest-energy, back-to-back jets, resulting in a distribution of opening angles and the splittings that are vacuumlike. We also report measurements of the differential dijet momentum imbalance (AJ) for jets of varying θSJ. We find no qualitative differences in energy loss signatures for varying angular scales in the range 0.1< θSJ<0.3, leading to the possible interpretation that energy loss in this population of high-momentum dijet pairs, is due to soft medium-induced gluon radiation from a single color charge as it traverses the medium.

Abdallah, M. S.↗