We report on the first measurement of an excess in the yield of J/$\psi$ at very low transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}< 0.3$ GeV/$c$) in peripheral hadronic Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV, performed by ALICE at the CERN LHC. Remarkably, the measured nuclear modification factor of J/$\psi$ in the rapidity range $2.5<y<4$ reaches about 7 (2) in the $p_{\rm T}$ range 0-0.3 GeV/$c$ in the 70-90% (50-70%) centrality class. The J/$\psi$ production cross section associated with the observed excess is obtained under the hypothesis that coherent photoproduction of J/$\psi$ is the underlying physics mechanism. If confirmed, the observation of J/$\psi$ coherent photoproduction in Pb-Pb collisions at impact parameters smaller than twice the nuclear radius opens new theoretical and experimental challenges and opportunities. In particular, coherent photoproduction accompanying hadronic collisions may provide insight into the dynamics of photoproduction and nuclear reactions, as well as become a novel probe of the Quark-Gluon Plasma.
The production of J/$\psi$ and $\psi(2S)$ was measured with the ALICE detector in Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC. The measurement was performed at forward rapidity ($2.5 < y < 4 $) down to zero transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) in the dimuon decay channel. Inclusive J/$\psi$ yields were extracted in different centrality classes and the centrality dependence of the average $p_{\rm T}$ is presented. The J/$\psi$ suppression, quantified with the nuclear modification factor ($R_{\rm AA}$), was studied as a function of centrality, transverse momentum and rapidity. Comparisons with similar measurements at lower collision energy and theoretical models indicate that the J/$\psi$ production is the result of an interplay between color screening and recombination mechanisms in a deconfined partonic medium, or at its hadronization. Results on the $\psi(2S)$ suppression are provided via the ratio of $\psi(2S)$ over J/$\psi$ measured in pp and Pb-Pb collisions.
The ALICE Collaboration has measured the inclusive production of muons from heavy flavour decays at forward rapidity, 2.5 < y < 4, in pp and Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt {s_{NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV. The $p_{\rm T}$-differential inclusive cross section of muons from heavy flavour decays in pp collisions is compared to perturbative QCD calculations. The nuclear modification factor is studied as a function of pt and collision centrality. A weak suppression is measured in peripheral collisions. In the most central collisions, a suppression of a factor of about 3-4 is observed in 6 < $p_{\rm T}$ < 10 GeV/$c$. The suppression shows no significant $p_{\rm T}$ dependence.
The transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) dependence of the nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm AA}$ and the centrality dependence of the average transverse momentum $\langle p_{\rm T}\rangle$ for inclusive J/$\psi$ have been measured with ALICE for Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV in the e$^+$e$^-$ decay channel at mid-rapidity ($|y|<0.8$). The $\langle p_{\rm T}\rangle$ is significantly smaller than the one observed for pp collisions at the same centre-of-mass energy. Consistently, an increase of $R_{\rm AA}$ is observed towards low $p_{\rm T}$. These observations might be indicative of a sizable contribution of charm quark coalescence to the J/$\psi$ production. Additionally, the fraction of non-prompt J/$\psi$ from beauty hadron decays, $f_{\rm B}$, has been determined in the region $1.5 < p_{\rm T} < 10$ GeV/c in three centrality intervals. No significant centrality dependence of $f_{\rm B}$ is observed. Finally, the $R_{\rm AA}$ of non-prompt J/$\psi$ is discussed and compared with model predictions. The nuclear modification in the region $4.5 < p_{\rm T} < 10$ GeV/c is found to be stronger than predicted by most models.
The nuclear modification factor, $R_{\rm AA}$, of the prompt charmed mesons ${\rm D^0}$, ${\rm D^+}$ and ${\rm D^{*+}}$, and their antiparticles, was measured with the ALICE detector in Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76$ TeV in two transverse momentum intervals, $5<p_{\rm T}<8$ GeV/$c$ and $8<p_{\rm T}<16$ GeV/$c$, and in six collision centrality classes. The $R_{\rm AA}$ shows a maximum suppression of a factor of 5-6 in the 10% most central collisions. The suppression and its centrality dependence are compatible within uncertainties with those of charged pions. A comparison with the $R_{\rm AA}$ of non-prompt ${\rm J}/\psi$ from B meson decays, measured by the CMS Collaboration, hints at a larger suppression of D mesons in the most central collisions.
The inclusive transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) distributions of primary charged particles are measured in the pseudo-rapidity range $|\eta|<0.8$ as a function of event centrality in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}}=2.76$ TeV with ALICE at the LHC. The data are presented in the $p_{\rm T}$ range $0.15<p_{\rm T}<50$ GeV/$c$ for nine centrality intervals from 70-80% to 0-5%. The Pb-Pb spectra are presented in terms of the nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm{AA}}$ using a pp reference spectrum measured at the same collision energy. We observe that the suppression of high-$p_{\rm T}$ particles strongly depends on event centrality. In central collisions (0-5%) the yield is most suppressed with $R_{\rm{AA}}\approx0.13$ at $p_{\rm T}=6$-7 GeV/$c$. Above $p_{\rm T}=7$ GeV/$c$, there is a significant rise in the nuclear modification factor, which reaches $R_{\rm{AA}} \approx0.4$ for $p_{\rm T}>30$ GeV/$c$. In peripheral collisions (70-80%), the suppression is weaker with $R_{\rm{AA}} \approx 0.7$ almost independently of $p_{\rm T}$. The measured nuclear modification factors are compared to other measurements and model calculations.
The production of $\Upsilon$ mesons in Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5 TeV is measured with the muon spectrometer of the ALICE detector at the LHC. The yields as well as the nuclear modification factors are determined in the forward rapidity region $2.5<y<4.0$, as a function of rapidity, transverse momentum and collision centrality. The results show that the production of the $\Upsilon$(1S) meson is suppressed by a factor of about three with respect to the production in proton-proton collisions. For the first time, a significant signal for the $\Upsilon$(2S) meson is observed at forward rapidity, indicating a suppression stronger by about a factor 2-3 with respect to the ground state. The measurements are compared with transport, hydrodynamic, comover and statistical hadronisation model calculations.
We report on the production of inclusive $\Upsilon$(1S) and $\Upsilon$(2S) in p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02$ TeV at the LHC. The measurement is performed with the ALICE detector at backward ($-4.46< y_{{\rm cms}}<-2.96$) and forward ($2.03< y_{{\rm cms}}<3.53$) rapidity down to zero transverse momentum. The production cross sections of the $\Upsilon$(1S) and $\Upsilon$(2S) are presented, as well as the nuclear modification factor and the ratio of the forward to backward yields of $\Upsilon$(1S). A suppression of the inclusive $\Upsilon$(1S) yield in p-Pb collisions with respect to the yield from pp collisions scaled by the number of binary nucleon-nucleon collisions is observed at forward rapidity but not at backward rapidity. The results are compared to theoretical model calculations including nuclear shadowing or partonic energy loss effects.
The production of prompt D$_s^+$ mesons was measured for the first time in collisions of heavy nuclei with the ALICE detector at the LHC. The analysis was performed on a data sample of Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair, $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$, of 2.76 TeV in two different centrality classes, namely 0-10% and 20-50%. D$_s^+$ mesons and their antiparticles were reconstructed at mid-rapidity from their hadronic decay channel D$_s^+\rightarrow\phi\pi^+$, with $\phi\rightarrow$K$^-$K$^+$, in the transverse momentum intervals $4< p_{\rm T}<12$ GeV/$c$ and $6< p_{\rm T}<12$ GeV/$c$ for the 0-10% and 20-50% centrality classes, respectively. The nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm AA}$ was computed by comparing the $p_{\rm T}$-differential production yields in Pb-Pb collisions to those in proton-proton (pp) collisions at the same energy. This pp reference was obtained using the cross section measured at $\sqrt{s}= 7$ TeV and scaled to $\sqrt{s}= 2.76$ TeV. The $R_{\rm AA}$ of D$_s^+$ mesons was compared to that of non-strange D mesons in the 10% most central Pb-Pb collisions. At high $p_{\rm T}$ ($8< p_{\rm T}<12$ GeV/$c$) a suppression of the D$_s^+$-meson yield by a factor of about three, compatible within uncertainties with that of non-strange D mesons, is observed. At lower $p_{\rm T}$ ($4< p_{\rm T}<8$ GeV/$c$) the values of the D$_s^+$-meson $R_{\rm AA}$ are larger than those of non-strange D mesons, although compatible within uncertainties. The production ratios D$_s^+$/D$^0$ and D$_s^+$\D$^+$ were also measured in Pb-Pb collisions and compared to their values in proton-proton collisions.
The inclusive $J/\psi$ nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm AA}$ in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$=2.76 TeV has been measured by ALICE as a function of centrality in the e$^+$e$^-$ decay channel at mid-rapidity $|y|<0.8$ and as a function of centrality, transverse momentum and rapidity in the $\mu^{+}\mu^{-}$ decay channel at forward-rapidity $2.5<y<4$.The $J/\psi$ yields measured in Pb-Pb are suppressed compared to those in pp collisions scaled by the number of binary collisions. The $R_{\rm AA}$ integrated over a centrality range corresponding to 90% of the inelastic Pb-Pb cross section is $0.72\pm0.06$ (stat.) $\pm0.10$ (syst.) at mid-rapidity and $0.57 \pm 0.01$ (stat.) $\pm0.09$ (syst.) at forward-rapidity. At low transverse momentum, significantly larger values of $R_{\rm AA}$ are measured at forward-rapidity compared to measurements at lower energy. These features suggest that a contribution to the $J/\psi$ yield originates from charm quarks (re)combination in the deconfined partonic medium.