The first measurement of event-by-event antideuteron number fluctuations in high energy heavy-ion collisions is presented. The measurements are carried out at midrapidity ($|\eta| < 0.8$) as a function of collision centrality in Pb$-$Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 5.02$ TeV using the ALICE detector. A significant negative correlation between the produced antiprotons and antideuterons is observed in all collision centralities. The results are compared with coalescence calculations, which fail to describe the measurement, in particular if a correlated production of protons and neutrons is assumed. Thermal-statistical model calculations describe the data within uncertainties only for correlation volumes that are different with respect to those describing proton yields and a similar measurement of net-proton number fluctuations.
Second order to first order cumulant ratio of the $\overline{d}$ multiplicity distribution as a function of collision centrality in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV.
Pearson correlation between the measured $\overline{p}$ and $\overline{d}$ as a function of collision centrality in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV.
Dependence of $\overline{p}$-$\overline{d}$ correlation on pseudorapidity acceptance of $\overline{p}$ and $\overline{d}$ selection in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV. Results are for 0.0--10.0$\%$ collision centrality.
We report about the properties of the underlying event measured with ALICE at the LHC in pp and p$-$Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02$ TeV. The event activity, quantified by charged-particle number and summed-$p_{\rm T}$ densities, is measured as a function of the leading-particle transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$). These quantities are studied in three azimuthal-angle regions relative to the leading particle in the event: toward, away, and transverse. Results are presented for three different $p_{\rm T}$ thresholds (0.15, 0.5, and 1 GeV/$c$) at mid-pseudorapidity ($|\eta|<0.8$). The event activity in the transverse region, which is the most sensitive to the underlying event, exhibits similar behaviour in both pp and p$-$Pb collisions, namely, a steep increase with $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$ for low $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$, followed by a saturation at $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig} \approx 5$ GeV/$c$. The results from pp collisions are compared with existing measurements at other centre-of-mass energies. The quantities in the toward and away regions are also analyzed after the subtraction of the contribution measured in the transverse region. The remaining jet-like particle densities are consistent in pp and p$-$Pb collisions for $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}>10$ GeV/$c$, whereas for lower $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$ values the event activity is slightly higher in p$-$Pb than in pp collisions. The measurements are compared with predictions from the PYTHIA 8 and EPOS LHC Monte Carlo event generators.
Fig. 4: Number density $N_{\rm ch}$ (left) and $\Sigma p_{\rm T}$ (right) distributions as a function of $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$ in Transverse, Away, and Toward regions for $p_{\rm T} >$ 0.5 GeV/$c$. The shaded areas and the error bars around the data points represent the systematic and statistical uncertainties, respectively.
Fig. 5: Number density $N_{\rm ch}$ (left) and $\Sigma p_{\rm T}$ (right) distributions as a function of $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$ in Transverse, Away, and Toward regions for $p_{\rm T} >$ 0.5 GeV/$c$. The shaded areas and the error bars around the data points represent the systematic and statistical uncertainties, respectively.
Fig. 6a: Number density $N_{\rm ch}$ (left) and $\Sigma p_{\rm T}$ (right) distributions as a function of $p_{\rm T}^{\rm trig}$ in Away and Toward regions after the subtraction of Number density $N_{\rm ch}$ and $\Sigma p_{\rm T}$ distributions in the transverse region for pp collisions for $p_{\rm T} >$ 0.5 GeV/$c$. The shaded areas and the error bars around the data points represent the systematic and statistical uncertainties, respectively.
Notwithstanding decades of progress since Yukawa first developed a description of the force between nucleons in terms of meson exchange, a full understanding of the strong interaction remains a major challenge in modern science. One remaining difficulty arises from the non-perturbative nature of the strong force, which leads to the phenomenon of quark confinement at distances on the order of the size of the proton. Here we show that in relativistic heavy-ion collisions, where quarks and gluons are set free over an extended volume, two species of produced vector (spin-1) mesons, namely $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$, emerge with a surprising pattern of global spin alignment. In particular, the global spin alignment for $\phi$ is unexpectedly large, while that for $K^{*0}$ is consistent with zero. The observed spin-alignment pattern and magnitude for the $\phi$ cannot be explained by conventional mechanisms, while a model with a connection to strong force fields, i.e. an effective proxy description within the Standard Model and Quantum Chromodynamics, accommodates the current data. This connection, if fully established, will open a potential new avenue for studying the behaviour of strong force fields.
Global spin alignment of $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ vector mesons in heavy-ion collisions. The measured matrix element $\rho_{00}$ as a function of beam energy for the $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ vector mesons within the indicated windows of centrality, transverse momentum ($p_T$) and rapidity ($y$). The open symbols indicate ALICE results for Pb+Pb collisions at 2.76 TeV at $p_{T}$ values of 2.0 and 1.4 GeV/c for the $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ mesons, respectively, corresponding to the $p_{T}$ bin nearest to the mean $p_{T}$ for the 1.0 – 5.0 GeV/$c$ range assumed for each meson in the present analysis. The red solid curve is a fit to data in the range of $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 19.6$ to 200 GeV, based on a theoretical calculation with a $\phi$-meson field. Parameter sensitivity of $\rho_{00}$ to the $\phi$-meson field is shown in Ref.5. The red dashed line is an extension of the solid curve with the fitted parameter $G_s^{(y)}$. The black dashed line represents $\rho_{00}=1/3.$
Global spin alignment of $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ vector mesons in heavy-ion collisions. The measured matrix element $\rho_{00}$ as a function of beam energy for the $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ vector mesons within the indicated windows of centrality, transverse momentum ($p_T$) and rapidity ($y$). The open symbols indicate ALICE results for Pb+Pb collisions at 2.76 TeV at $p_{T}$ values of 2.0 and 1.4 GeV/c for the $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ mesons, respectively, corresponding to the $p_{T}$ bin nearest to the mean $p_{T}$ for the 1.0 – 5.0 GeV/$c$ range assumed for each meson in the present analysis. The red solid curve is a fit to data in the range of $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 19.6$ to 200 GeV, based on a theoretical calculation with a $\phi$-meson field. Parameter sensitivity of $\rho_{00}$ to the $\phi$-meson field is shown in Ref.5. The red dashed line is an extension of the solid curve with the fitted parameter $G_s^{(y)}$. The black dashed line represents $\rho_{00}=1/3.$
Example of combinatorial background subtracted invariant mass distributions and the extracted yields as a function of $\cos \theta^*$ for $\phi$ and $K^{*0}$ mesons. \textbf{a)} example of $\phi \rightarrow K^+ + K^-$ invariant mass distributions, with combinatorial background subtracted, integrated over $\cos \theta^*$; \textbf{b)} example of $K^{*0} (\overline{K^{*0}}) \rightarrow K^{-} \pi^{+} (K^{+} \pi^{-})$ invariant mass distributions, with combinatorial background subtracted, integrated over $\cos \theta^*$; \textbf{c)} extracted yields of $\phi$ as a function of $\cos \theta^*$; \textbf{d)} extracted yields of $K^{*0}$ as a function of $\cos \theta^*$.
A linearly polarized photon can be quantized from the Lorentz-boosted electromagnetic field of a nucleus traveling at ultra-relativistic speed. When two relativistic heavy nuclei pass one another at a distance of a few nuclear radii, the photon from one nucleus may interact through a virtual quark-antiquark pair with gluons from the other nucleus forming a short-lived vector meson (e.g. ${ρ^0}$). In this experiment, the polarization was utilized in diffractive photoproduction to observe a unique spin interference pattern in the angular distribution of ${ρ^0\rightarrowπ^+π^-}$ decays. The observed interference is a result of an overlap of two wave functions at a distance an order of magnitude larger than the ${ρ^0}$ travel distance within its lifetime. The strong-interaction nuclear radii were extracted from these diffractive interactions, and found to be $6.53\pm 0.06$ fm ($^{197} {\rm Au }$) and $7.29\pm 0.08$ fm ($^{238} {\rm U}$), larger than the nuclear charge radii. The observable is demonstrated to be sensitive to the nuclear geometry and quantum interference of non-identical particles.
The invariant mass distribution of pi+pi- pairs collected from Au+Au and U+U collisions.
Two-dimensional $\rho^0$ momentum distribution from Au+Au collisions.
Two-dimensional $\rho^0$ momentum distribution from Au+Au collisions.
We present high-precision measurements of elliptic, triangular, and quadrangular flow $v_{2}$, $v_{3}$, and $v_{4}$, respectively, at midrapidity ($|\eta|<1.0$) for identified hadrons $\pi$, $p$, $K$, $\varphi$, $K_s$, $\Lambda$ as a function of centrality and transverse momentum in Au+Au collisions at the center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=$ 200 GeV. We observe similar $v_{n}$ trends between light and strange mesons which indicates that the heavier strange quarks flow as strongly as the lighter up and down quarks. The number-of-constituent-quark scaling for $v_{2}$, $v_{3}$, and $v_{4}$ is found to hold within statistical uncertainty for 0-10$\%$, 10-40$\%$ and 40-80$\%$ collision centrality intervals. The results are compared to several viscous hydrodynamic calculations with varying initial conditions, and could serve as an additional constraint to the development of hydrodynamic models.
The transverse momentum dependence of elliptic, triangular and quadrangular flow of particles, antiparticles and their difference for 0-80 central Au+Au collisions.
The transverse momentum dependence of elliptic, triangular and quadrangular flow of particles, antiparticles and their difference for 0-80 central Au+Au collisions.
The transverse momentum dependence of elliptic, triangular and quadrangular flow of particles, antiparticles and their difference for 0-80 central Au+Au collisions.
Elliptic flow measurements from two-, four- and six-particle correlations are used to investigate flow fluctuations in collisions of U+U at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$= 193 GeV, Cu+Au at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$= 200 GeV and Au+Au spanning the range $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$= 11.5 - 200 GeV. The measurements show a strong dependence of the flow fluctuations on collision centrality, a modest dependence on system size, and very little if any, dependence on particle species and beam energy. The results, when compared to similar LHC measurements, viscous hydrodynamic calculations, and T$\mathrel{\protect\raisebox{-2.1pt}{R}}$ENTo model eccentricities, indicate that initial-state-driven fluctuations predominate the flow fluctuations generated in the collisions studied.
The Au+Au 200 GeV measurements of the two and four-particle elliptic flow and the elliptic flow fluctuations of the $\pi$ particle.
The Au+Au 200 GeV measurements of the two and four-particle elliptic flow and the elliptic flow fluctuations of the K particle.
The Au+Au 200 GeV measurements of the two and four-particle elliptic flow and the elliptic flow fluctuations of the p particle.
In high-energy heavy-ion collisions, partonic collectivity is evidenced by the constituent quark number scaling of elliptic flow anisotropy for identified hadrons. A breaking of this scaling and dominance of baryonic interactions is found for identified hadron collective flow measurements in $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 3 GeV Au+Au collisions. In this paper, we report measurements of the first- and second-order azimuthal anisotropic parameters, $v_1$ and $v_2$, of light nuclei ($d$, $t$, $^{3}$He, $^{4}$He) produced in $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 3 GeV Au+Au collisions at the STAR experiment. An atomic mass number scaling is found in the measured $v_1$ slopes of light nuclei at mid-rapidity. For the measured $v_2$ magnitude, a strong rapidity dependence is observed. Unlike $v_2$ at higher collision energies, the $v_2$ values at mid-rapidity for all light nuclei are negative and no scaling is observed with the atomic mass number. Calculations by the Jet AA Microscopic Transport Model (JAM), with baryonic mean-field plus nucleon coalescence, are in good agreement with our observations, implying baryonic interactions dominate the collective dynamics in 3 GeV Au+Au collisions at RHIC.
The rapidity and $p_{T}$ dependencies of $v_{1}$ for $p$ in 10-40% mid-central Au+Au collisions at 3 GeV.
The rapidity and $p_{T}$ dependencies of $v_{1}$ for $d$ in 10-40% mid-central Au+Au collisions at 3 GeV.
The $p_{T}$ dependencies of $v_{1}$ within $-0.1<y<0$ for $t$ in 10-40% mid-central Au+Au collisions at 3 GeV.
We report cumulants of the proton multiplicity distribution from dedicated fixed-target Au+Au collisions at 3.0 GeV, measured by the STAR experiment in the kinematic acceptance of rapidity ($y$) and transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) within $-0.5 < y<0$ and $0.4 < p_{\rm T} <2.0 $ GeV/$c$. In the most central 0--5% collisions, a proton cumulant ratio is measured to be $C_4/C_2=-0.85 \pm 0.09 ~(\rm stat.) \pm 0.82 ~(\rm syst.)$, which is less than unity, the Poisson baseline. The hadronic transport UrQMD model reproduces our $C_4/C_2$ in the measured acceptance. Compared to higher energy results and the transport model calculations, the suppression in $C_4/C_2$ is consistent with fluctuations driven by baryon number conservation and indicates an energy regime dominated by hadronic interactions. These data imply that the QCD critical region, if created in heavy-ion collisions, could only exist at energies higher than 3 GeV.
$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 3.0 GeV data (black markers), GM (red histogram), and single and pile-up contributions from unfolding. Vertical lines on markers represent statistical uncertainties. Single, pile-up and single+pile-up collisions are shown in solid blue markers, dashed green and dashed magenta curves, respectively. Analysis is performed on 0–5% central events, indicated by a black arrow.
$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 3.0 GeV data (black markers), GM (red histogram), and single and pile-up contributions from unfolding. Vertical lines on markers represent statistical uncertainties. Single, pile-up and single+pile-up collisions are shown in solid blue markers, dashed green and dashed magenta curves, respectively. Analysis is performed on 0–5% central events, indicated by a black arrow.
Centrality dependence of the proton cumulant ratios for Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 3.0 GeV. Protons are from $-0.5 < y < 0$ and $0.4 < p_{T} < 2.0$ GeV/$c$. Systematic uncertainties are represented by gray bars. Statistical uncertainties are smaller than marker size. CBWC is applied to all cumulant ratios. While open squares represent the data without the VFC correction, blue triangles and red circles are the results with VFC using the $\langle N_{\rm{part}} \rangle$ distributions from the UrQMD and Glauber models, respectively. UrQMD model results are represented as gold dashed line.
Partons traversing the strongly interacting medium produced in heavy-ion collisions are expected to lose energy depending on their color charge and mass. We measure the nuclear modification factors for charm- and bottom-decay electrons, defined as the ratio of yields, scaled by the number of binary nucleon-nucleon collisions, in $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 200 GeV Au+Au collisions to $p$+$p$ collisions ($R_{\rm AA}$), or in central to peripheral Au+Au collisions ($R_{\rm CP}$). We find the bottom-decay electron $R_{\rm AA}$ and $R_{\rm CP}$ to be significantly higher than that of charm-decay electrons. Model calculations including mass-dependent parton energy loss in a strongly coupled medium are consistent with the measured data. These observations provide clear evidence of mass ordering of charm and bottom quark energy loss when traversing through the strongly coupled medium created in heavy-ion collisions.
Fit to the $\rm log_{10}(DCA/cm)$ of candidate electrons with $p_{\rm T}$ $\in$ [3.5,4.5] GeV/$c$ in 0-80% Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=200$ GeV, where the DCA is defined as the 3D distance-of-closest approach of the track to the primary vertex. The solid blue line shows the full template fit, and the various other lines show the individual components. The bottom panel shows the residual distribution of the template fit scaled by the statistical uncertainties.
Invariant yield of the electrons from decays of prompt $J/\psi$, $\Upsilon$, Drell-Yan and light vector mesons in 0-80% Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 200 GeV.
Invariant yield of heavy flavor hadron decayed electrons in 0-80% Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 200 GeV.
The STAR Collaboration reports measurements of back-to-back azimuthal correlations of di-$\pi^0$s produced at forward pseudorapidities ($2.6<\eta<4.0$) in $p$+$p$, $p+$Al, and $p+$Au collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 200 GeV. We observe a clear suppression of the correlated yields of back-to-back $\pi^0$ pairs in $p+$Al and $p+$Au collisions compared to the $p$+$p$ data. The observed suppression of back-to-back pairs as a function of transverse momentum suggests nonlinear gluon dynamics arising at high parton densities. The larger suppression found in $p+$Au relative to $p+$Al collisions exhibits a dependence of the saturation scale, $Q_s^2$, on the mass number, $A$. A linear scaling of the suppression with $A^{1/3}$ is observed with a slope of $-0.09$$\pm$$0.01$.
The correlation functions (corrected for nonuniform detector efficiency in $\phi$; not corrected for the absolute detection efficiency) vs. azimuthal angle difference between forward ($2.6<\eta<4.0$) $\pi^{0}$s in $p$+$p$ collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{_{NN}}}}=200$ GeV at low $p_{T}$ ($p^{trig}_{T}$=2-2.5 GeV/c, $p^{asso}_{T}$=1-1.5 GeV/c)
The correlation functions (corrected for nonuniform detector efficiency in $\phi$; not corrected for the absolute detection efficiency) vs. azimuthal angle difference between forward ($2.6<\eta<4.0$) $\pi^{0}$s in $p+$Al collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{_{NN}}}}=200$ GeV at low $p_{T}$ ($p^{trig}_{T}$=2-2.5 GeV/c, $p^{asso}_{T}$=1-1.5 GeV/c)
The correlation functions (corrected for nonuniform detector efficiency in $\phi$; not corrected for the absolute detection efficiency) vs. azimuthal angle difference between forward ($2.6<\eta<4.0$) $\pi^{0}$s in $p+$Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{_{NN}}}}=200$ GeV at low $p_{T}$ ($p^{trig}_{T}$=2-2.5 GeV/c, $p^{asso}_{T}$=1-1.5 GeV/c)
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