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At least 37 records · Page 2

Results from Cu+Au collisions at 200 GeV in PHENIX Experiment

Collisions of asymmetric nuclei (Cu+Au) differ essentially from the case of symmetric nuclei (Cu+Cu, Au+Au) collisions in the geometry of overlap region. This leads to a number of consequences, which provide more absolute and accurate information about fundamental properties of matter under extreme conditions. Nuclear modification factors for π-mesons in Cu+Au interactions at 200 GeV were measured in PHENIX Experiment at RHIC. New experimental data on measurement of flows of different order (v{sub 1}, v{sub 2}) for light hadrons in Cu+Au interactions at 200 GeV will be discussed in this paper.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

pyDiSCaMB : enabling the use of multipolar scattering factors in Phenix

Multipolar scattering models, such as the transferable aspherical atom model, account for atomic chemical interactions and provide a more accurate representation of experimental data. However, the simpler independent atom model (IAM), which assumes non-interacting atoms, is the only model available in the most widely used macromolecular refinement programs. This is primarily because IAM offers a hard-to-beat combination of computational efficiency and modelling power at typical macromolecular resolutions. By contrast, more accurate multipolar modelling has historically been limited due to its computational cost and the absence of an interface between software capable of calculating structure factors and gradients based on multipolar models and software designed for macromolecular refinement. This work introduces pyDiSCaMB , a Python software package designed to integrate between the computational crystallography toolbox ( cctbx ) and the quantum crystallography library DiSCaMB ( Densities in Structural Chemistry and Molecular Biology ), thus enabling multipolar scattering models in Phenix 's toolkit. The implementation, features and capabilities of pyDiSCaMB are presented, the runtimes for the calculation of structure factor and target gradients with respect to atomic parameters are explored, and Fourier images of electrostatic potential, electron density and deformation maps are computed as illustrative examples. The pyDiSCaMB library will make multipolar modelling widely available to the structural biology community, potentially transforming refinement and model-building for both crystallography and cryogenic electron microscopy (cryoEM).

MATTS data bank↗

A new default restraint library for the protein backbone in Phenix : a conformation-dependent geometry goes mainstream

Chemical restraints are a fundamental part of crystallographic protein structure refinement. In response to mounting evidence that conventional restraints have shortcomings, it has previously been documented that using backbone restraints that depend on the protein backbone conformation helps to address these shortcomings and improves the performance of refinements [Moriarty et al. (2014), FEBS J. 281 , 4061–4071]. It is important that these improvements be made available to all in the protein crystallography community. Toward this end, a change in the default geometry library used by Phenix is described here. Tests are presented showing that this change will not generate increased numbers of outliers during validation, or deposition in the Protein Data Bank, during the transition period in which some validation tools still use the conventional restraint libraries.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Real-space refinement in PHENIX for cryo-EM and crystallography

This article describes the implementation of real-space refinement in the phenix.real_space_refine program from the PHENIX suite. The use of a simplified refinement target function enables very fast calculation, which in turn makes it possible to identify optimal data-restraint weights as part of routine refinements with little runtime cost. Refinement of atomic models against low-resolution data benefits from the inclusion of as much additional information as is available. In addition to standard restraints on covalent geometry, phenix.real_space_refine makes use of extra information such as secondary-structure and rotamer-specific restraints, as well as restraints or constraints on internal molecular symmetry. The re-refinement of 385 cryo-EM-derived models available in the Protein Data Bank at resolutions of 6 Å or better shows significant improvement of the models and of the fit of these models to the target maps.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Improved chemistry restraints for crystallographic refinement by integrating the Amber force field into Phenix

The refinement of biomolecular crystallographic models relies on geometric restraints to help to address the paucity of experimental data typical in these experiments. Limitations in these restraints can degrade the quality of the resulting atomic models. Here, an integration of the full all-atom Amber molecular-dynamics force field into Phenix crystallographic refinement is presented, which enables more complete modeling of biomolecular chemistry. The advantages of the force field include a carefully derived set of torsion-angle potentials, an extensive and flexible set of atom types, Lennard–Jones treatment of nonbonded interactions and a full treatment of crystalline electrostatics. The new combined method was tested against conventional geometry restraints for over 22 000 protein structures. Structures refined with the new method show substantially improved model quality. On average, Ramachandran and rotamer scores are somewhat better, clashscores and MolProbity scores are significantly improved, and the modeling of electrostatics leads to structures that exhibit more, and more correct, hydrogen bonds than those refined using traditional geometry restraints. In general it is found that model improvements are greatest at lower resolutions, prompting plans to add the Amber target function to real-space refinement for use in electron cryo-microscopy. This work opens the door to the future development of more advanced applications such as Amber -based ensemble refinement, quantum-mechanical representation of active sites and improved geometric restraints for simulated annealing.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Inclusive cross section and single transverse-spin asymmetry of very forward neutron production at PHENIX

The cross section and x{sub F} dependence of A{sub N} of very forward neutron production in polarized p + p collisions at √s = 200 GeV were measured in the PHENIX experiment at RHIC. The measured cross sections were consistent with the x{sub F} scaling claimed by the ISR experiment. Significant negative A{sub N} was observed in the forward region, and no significant backward A{sub N} was observed. We also measured √s and p{sub T} dependence of A{sub N} of very forward neutron production at √s from 62.4 to 500 GeV.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Light Meson Production in Heavy Ion Collisions in the PHENIX Experiment

Production of a strongly interacting quark−gluon plasma (QGP) has been established in central heavy ion collisions during the studies carried out at the RHIC collider. The experiments on interactions of asymmetric nuclei (Cu + Au, U + U) provide the means to study systematically a jet quenching effect, which is a signature of QGP formation. In this paper, the factors of nuclear modification of π{sup 0} and η mesons in Cu + Au and U + U collisions at 200 GeV measured in the PHENIX experiment at RHIC are presented.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

PHENIX Probing QCD Matter Through Heavy Flavor and Quarkonium at RHIC

Recent results from the PHENIX experiment on heavy flavors and quarkonia production in p + Al, p + Au, d + Au, and Au + Au collision systems at psNN = 200 GeV are summarized. The results are carried out by the measurements of the nuclear modification factors and elliptic flow. The nuclear modification factors measurements give insight into the energy loss of heavy quarks in the quark-gluon plasma medium along their path lengths. The elliptic flow measurements are a good tool to investigate the coupling of heavy quarks with the medium. The measurements are presented as a function of centrality, rapidity, and transverse momentum. The interpretations of the results in light of our current theoretical models, and comparison to LHCb and ALICE measurements are presented.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Implementation of the riding hydrogen model in CCTBX to support the next generation of X-ray and neutron joint refinement in Phenix

A fundamental prerequisite for implementing new procedures of atomic model refinement against neutron diffraction data is the efficient handling of hydrogen atoms. The riding hydrogen model, which constrains hydrogen atom parameters to those of the non-hydrogen atoms, is a plausible parameterization for refinements. This work describes the implementation of the riding hydrogen model in the Computational Crystallography Toolbox and in Phenix. Riding hydrogen atoms can be found in several different configurations that are characterized by specific geometries. For each configuration, the hydrogen atom parameterization and the expressions for the gradients of refinement target function with respect to non-hydrogen parameters are described.

H atom parameterization↗

d + Au hadron correlation measurements at PHENIX

In these proceedings, we discuss recent results from d + Au collisions in PHENIX ridge related measurements and their possible hydrodynamic origin. We present the v 2 at midrapidity and measurements of the pseudorapidity dependence of the ridge, distinguishing between the d-going and Au-going directions. We investigate the possible geometrical origin by comparing v 2 in d + Au to that in p + Pb, Au + Au and Pb + Pb collisions. Future plans to clarify the role of geometry in small collision systems at RHIC are discussed.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

PHENIX measurements of open and hidden heavy flavor in p+p , p+Al, and p/d/ 3 He+Au collisions across a wide range of rapidity

Despite intense theoretical and experimental investigation, the physical mechanisms governing the suppression of bound quark-antiquark states in nuclear collisions are not yet fully understood. While color screening in a plasma phase is expected to play a role, there are numerous other possible suppression mechanisms that do not require deconfinement, as well as effects on the heavy quark initial state in the nucleus which can also play a role. To study these effects, the PHENIX collaboration has used the flexibility of the RHIC accelerator complex to observe the evolution of open heavy flavor and quarkonia dynamics as both the projectile and target nuclei size are varied. Open heavy flavor in small collision systems can serve as the baseline for interpreting quarkonia production in the nuclear environment, and comparisons of the ψ(2S) with the ψ(1S) show that in rapidity regions with relatively high hadron density, the larger 2S state is preferentially more suppressed than the more tightly bound ψ(1S). This suggests that late-stage mechanisms may be at least partially responsible for quarkonia suppression in nuclear collisions. In this talk, we will present results on excited-state quarkonia in p+p, p+Al, and p/d/ 3 He+Au collisions and open heavy flavor in small systems, and discuss how these measurements impact our understanding of heavy quark behavior in the quark-gluon plasma.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

PHENIX Measurement of B → J/ ψ in Cu+Au collisions at s N N = 200 GeV and in p + p collisions at 200 GeV and 510 GeV

This study is part of the RHIC program to probe properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma medium properties using heavy quark energy loss. Part of the control of these measurements is to understand initial production of heavy quarks and how initial conditions in nucleus collisions can alter their yields. This manuscript reports the effort made by the PHENIX collaboration to measure total B-mesons yields, by looking at the fraction of muons from non-prompt J/ψ decays at displaced vertices in p+p and Cu+Au collisions. The total cross-sections of b-quarks in 200 GeV and 510 GeV p+p collisions follow the increasing trend from fixed target experiments to high energy results from the Tevatron and the LHC. Integrated pT and centrality B-meson yields in Cu+Au integrated over transverse momentum and centrality are consistent with no nuclear modification or some enhancement, in contrast to prompt J/ψ which shows a strong suppression

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Passive high explosive neutron inspection (PHENIX): a new method to confirm the presence or absence of high explosives for nuclear treaty verification

Advanced instruments and methods need to be developed now to create a technical basis to support the negotiation of future nuclear arms control treaties. One new capability that is anticipated is the ability to confirm either the declared presence or declared absence of high explosive (HE) material in the presence of special nuclear material (SNM). Towards this goal, Passive HE Neutron Inspection (PHENIX) has been developed and demonstrated as a method for confirming the presence or absence of HE in the presence of plutonium. The method exploits the inherent presence of neutrons associated with the decay of plutonium as an internal probe source for performing prompt gamma-ray neutron activation analysis (PGNAA), searching for the presence of HE as revealed by the emission of characteristic gamma rays following neutron absorption in hydrogen and nitrogen which are building blocks of present-day, military-grade HE. Tests using stoichiometrically-correct hemishells of mock HE with plutonium show that a system can be expected to positively confirm the presence or absence of these signatures, supporting determination of HE presence or absence with Pu, in a few hours. To protect other potentially sensitive gamma-ray signatures from a treaty accountable item, an analog information barrier has been conceptualized and tested which physically prevents the collection of gamma-ray spectral data outside of user selected energy windows strategically chosen to view only narrow spectral regions corresponding to the hydrogen (2223.2 keV) and nitrogen (9807.2 keV, 10,318.2 keV, and 10,829.2 keV) PGNAA signatures.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Scaling Properties of φ -Meson and Light Charged Hadron Production in Small and Large Systems at PHENIX

Recent results on the identified charged-hadron (π ± , K ± , p, p¯) production vat midrapidity region (|η| < 0.35) have been measured by the PHENIX experiment in p + Al, 3 He + Au, Cu + Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 200 GeV and U + U collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 193 GeV. These measurements are presented through the invariant transverse-momentum (p T ) and transverse-mass (m T ) spectra for different collision centralities. The averaged freeze-out temperature value for different systems was found to be 166.1 ± 2.2 MeV, and do not exhibit any dependence on the collision centrality and $\langle$N parti $\rangle$ values. The particle ratios of K/π and p/π have been measured in different centrality ranges of large and small collision systems. The values of K/π ratios measured in all considered collision systems were found to be consistent with those measured in p+p collisions. Furthermore, the identified charged-hadron nuclear-modification factors (R AB ) are also presented. Enhancement of proton R AB values over meson R AB values was observed in central 3 He+Au, Cu+Au, and U+U collisions. The proton R AB values measured in p+Al collision system were found to be consistent with R AB values of Φ, π ± , K ± , and π 0 mesons, suggesting that the size of the system produced in p+Al collisions is too small for recombination to cause a noticeable increase in proton production.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Progress in the U.S./Japan PHENIX Project for the Technological Assessment of Plasma Facing Components for DEMO Reactors

The PHENIX Project is a 6-year U.S./Japan bilateral, multi-institutional collaboration program for the Technological Assessment of Plasma Facing Components for DEMO Reactors. The goal is to address the technical feasibility of helium-cooled divertor concepts using tungsten as the armor material in fusion power reactors. The project specifically attempts to (1) improve heat transfer modeling for helium-cooled divertor systems through experiments including steady-state and pulsed high-heat-load testing, (2) understand the thermomechanical properties of tungsten metals and alloys under divertor-relevant neutron irradiation conditions, and (3) determine the behavior of tritium in tungsten materials through high-flux plasma exposure experiments. The High Flux Isotope Reactor and the Plasma Arc Lamp facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Tritium Plasma Experiment facility at Idaho National Laboratory, and the helium loop at Georgia Institute of Technology are utilized for evaluation of the response to high heat loads and tritium interactions of irradiated and unirradiated materials and components. This paper provides an overview of the progress achieved during the first 3 years and discusses the plan for the remainder of the project.

Kato, Yutai↗

Recent Heavy Flavor Results Utilizing the FVTX in PHENIX at RHIC

Heavy-flavor and quarkona production are important hard probes to test Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) and measure the properties of the Quark Gluon Plasma (QGP) created in high energy heavy ion collisions. The new PHENIX mid- and forward-rapidity silicon vertex detectors provide precise Distance of Closest Approach (DCA) determination, allowing charm and bottom yields identification, and improve di-muon mass resolution for charmonia studies. The relative ψ(2S) over J/ψ (1S) yields measured in p+p, p+Al and p+Au data at $\sqrt{s}$ =200 GeV help us to understand final state effects on the charmonia production. Direct access to B-meson production has been enabled via measurements of non-prompt J/ψ → µ + + µ - in p+p collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ =510 GeV and Cu+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 200 GeV. The fraction of B-meson decays in J/ψ yields in the p+p measurement agrees with higher energy results from Tevatron and the LHC. This fraction is enhanced in Cu+Au collisions suggesting the B-meson yield is not modi ed by the medium whereas J/ψ is strongly suppressed.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗