The centrality dependence of the charged-particle multiplicity density at mid-rapidity in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV is presented. The charged-particle density normalized per participating nucleon pair increases by about a factor 2 from peripheral (70-80%) to central (0-5%) collisions. The centrality dependence is found to be similar to that observed at lower collision energies. The data are compared with models based on different mechanisms for particle production in nuclear collisions.
The charged particle multiplicity density measurements for the nine centrality classes. Also given are the mean values of NPART, the number of participating nucleon pairs calulcated fromthe Glauber model. The errors shown are the systematic errors, with the statistical errors being small.
The dependence of the charged particle multiplicity density on the number of participants in the collisions.
We report on the first measurement of the triangular $v_3$, quadrangular $v_4$, and pentagonal $v_5$ charged particle flow in Pb-Pb collisions at 2.76 TeV measured with the ALICE detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. We show that the triangular flow can be described in terms of the initial spatial anisotropy and its fluctuations, which provides strong constraints on its origin. In the most central events, where the elliptic flow $v_2$ and $v_3$ have similar magnitude, a double peaked structure in the two-particle azimuthal correlations is observed, which is often interpreted as a Mach cone response to fast partons. We show that this structure can be naturally explained from the measured anisotropic flow Fourier coefficients.
v2{SP} (red filled circles).
v3{SP} (blue filled squares).
v4{SP} (purprle stars).
We report the first measurement of charged particle elliptic flow in Pb-Pb collisions at 2.76 TeV with the ALICE detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The measurement is performed in the central pseudorapidity region (|$\eta$|<0.8) and transverse momentum range 0.2< $p_{\rm T}$< 5.0 GeV/$c$. The elliptic flow signal v$_2$, measured using the 4-particle correlation method, averaged over transverse momentum and pseudorapidity is 0.087 $\pm$ 0.002 (stat) $\pm$ 0.004 (syst) in the 40-50% centrality class. The differential elliptic flow v$_2(p_{\rm T})$ reaches a maximum of 0.2 near $p_{\rm T}$ = 3 GeV/$c$. Compared to RHIC Au-Au collisions at 200 GeV, the elliptic flow increases by about 30%. Some hydrodynamic model predictions which include viscous corrections are in agreement with the observed increase.
Transverse momentum dependence of v2 for centrality 40-50% from the 2- and 4-particle cumulant methods.
Transverse momentum dependence of v2{4} for centralities 10-20%, 20-30% and 30-40%.
Centrality dependence of elliptic flow, integrated over the pT range 0.2 < pT < 5.0 GeV, estimated with two- and multi-particle correlation techniques.
Inclusive transverse momentum spectra of primary charged particles in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{\rm NN}}}$ = 2.76 TeV have been measured by the ALICE Collaboration at the LHC. The data are presented for central and peripheral collisions, corresponding to 0-5% and 70-80% of the hadronic Pb-Pb cross section. The measured charged particle spectra in $|\eta|<0.8$ and $0.3 < p_T < 20$ GeV/$c$ are compared to the expectation in pp collisions at the same $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$, scaled by the number of underlying nucleon-nucleon collisions. The comparison is expressed in terms of the nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm AA}$. The result indicates only weak medium effects ($R_{\rm AA} \approx $ 0.7) in peripheral collisions. In central collisions, $R_{\rm AA}$ reaches a minimum of about 0.14 at $p_{\rm T}=6$-7GeV/$c$ and increases significantly at larger $p_{\rm T}$. The measured suppression of high-$p_{\rm T}$ particles is stronger than that observed at lower collision energies, indicating that a very dense medium is formed in central Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC.
PT distributions of primary charged particles at mid-rapidity in central and peripheral PB-PB collisions.
PT distributions of primary charged particles at mid-rapidity in central and peripheral PB-PB collisions estimated from scaled PP data as described in the text of the paper.
Measurments of RAA, the nuclear modification factor (rate of PB-PB to P P cross section) in the central region.
On 23rd November 2009, during the early commissioning of the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC), two counter-rotating proton bunches were circulated for the first time concurrently in the machine, at the LHC injection energy of 450 GeV per beam. Although the proton intensity was very low, with only one pilot bunch per beam, and no systematic attempt was made to optimize the collision optics, all LHC experiments reported a number of collision candidates. In the ALICE experiment, the collision region was centred very well in both the longitudinal and transverse directions and 284 events were recorded in coincidence with the two passing proton bunches. The events were immediately reconstructed and analyzed both online and offline. We have used these events to measure the pseudorapidity density of charged primary particles in the central region. In the range |$\eta$| < 0.5, we obtain dNch/deta = 3.10 $\pm$ 0.13 (stat.) $\pm$ 0.22 (syst.) for all inelastic interactions, and dNch/deta = 3.51 $\pm$ 0.15 (stat.) $\pm$ 0.25 (syst.) for non-single diffractive interactions. These results are consistent with previous measurements in proton-antiproton interactions at the same centre-of-mass energy at the CERN SppS collider. They also illustrate the excellent functioning and rapid progress of the LHC accelerator, and of both the hardware and software of the ALICE experiment, in this early start-up phase.
Pseudorapidity dependence of DN/DETARAP in Inelastic (INEL) and Non-Single-Diffractive (NSD) collisions. Note that the plot in the paper shows only statistical errors.
Pseudorapidity density for |ETARAP|<0.5 for Inelastic (INEL) and Non-Single-Diffractive (NSD) collisions.
The ratio of the yields of antiprotons to protons in pp collisions has been measured by the ALICE experiment at $\sqrt{s} = 0.9$ and $7$ TeV during the initial running periods of the Large Hadron Collider(LHC). The measurement covers the transverse momentum interval $0.45 < p_{\rm{t}} < 1.05$ GeV/$c$ and rapidity $|y| < 0.5$. The ratio is measured to be $R_{|y| < 0.5} = 0.957 \pm 0.006 (stat.) \pm 0.014 (syst.)$ at $0.9$ TeV and $R_{|y| < 0.5} = 0.991 \pm 0.005 (stat.) \pm 0.014 (syst.)$ at $7$ TeV and it is independent of both rapidity and transverse momentum. The results are consistent with the conventional model of baryon-number transport and set stringent limits on any additional contributions to baryon-number transfer over very large rapidity intervals in pp collisions.
The PT dependence of the pbar/p ratio for the central rapidity region ABS(YRAP)<0.5.
The central rapidity pbar/p ratio as a function of the rapidity interval Ybeam-Ybaryon and centre-of-mass energy. As well as the present ALICE measurements this table also lists the values from other experiments (see the text of the paper for details).
We report on the measurement of two-pion correlation functions from pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}=900$ GeV performed by the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Our analysis shows an increase of the HBT radius with increasing event multiplicity, in line with other measurements done in particle- and nuclear collisions. Conversely, the strong decrease of the radius with increasing transverse momentum, as observed at RHIC and at Tevatron, is not manifest in our data.
Two-particle correlation functions for like-sign and unlike sign pion pairs.
Two-particle correlation functions for like-sign and unlike sign pion pairs.
Two-particle correlation functions for like-sign and unlike sign pion pairs.
The first measurement of two-pion Bose-Einstein correlations in central Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76$ TeV at the Large Hadron Collider is presented. We observe a growing trend with energy now not only for the longitudinal and the outward but also for the sideward pion source radius. The pion homogeneity volume and the decoupling time are significantly larger than those measured at RHIC.
Projections of the correlation function C.
Projections of the correlation function C.
Projections of the correlation function C.
The ALICE experiment at the LHC has studied inclusive J/$\psi$ production at central and forward rapidities in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV. In this Letter, we report on the first results obtained detecting the J/$\psi$ through its dilepton decay into $e^+e^-$ and $\mu^+\mu^-$ pairs in the rapidity range |y|<0.9 and 2.5<y<4, respectively, and with acceptance down to zero $p_{\rm T}$. In the dielectron channel the analysis was carried out on a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity $L_{\rm int}$ = 5.6 nb$^{-1}$ and the number of signal events is $N_{J/\psi}=352 \pm 32$ (stat.) $\pm$ 28 (syst.); the corresponding figures in the dimuon channel are $L_{\rm int}$ = 15.6 nb$^{-1}$ and $N_{J/\psi} = 1924 \pm 77$ (stat.) $\pm$ 144(syst.). The measured production cross sections are $\sigma_{J/\psi}$ (|y|<0.9) = 12.4 $\pm$ 1.1 (stat.) $\pm$ 1.8 (syst.) + 1.8 -2.7 (syst.pol.) $\mu$b and $\sigma_{J/\psi}$ (2.5<y<4) = 6.31 $\pm$ 0.25 (stat.) $\pm$ 0.76 (syst.) +0.95 -1.96 (syst.pol.) $\mu$b. The differential cross sections, in transverse momentum and rapidity, of the J/$\psi$ were also measured.
Double differential J/PSI cross section from the di-electron channel as a function of transverse momentum, the first error is statistical, the first systematic error is the correlated one, the second is the non-correlated one. The last four columns are the errors considering. a +1 polarization in the Collins-Soper frame, a -1 polarization in the Collins-Soper frame, a +1 polarization in the Helicity frame and a -1 polarization in the Helicity frame, respectively.
Differential J/PSI cross section from the di-muon channel as a function of transverse momentum, the first error is statistical, the first systematic error is the correlated one, the second is the non-correlated one. The last four columns are the errors (in MUB/GEV) considering a +1 polarization in the Collins-Soper frame, a -1 polarization in the Collins-Soper frame, a +1 polarization in the Helicity frame and a -1 polarization in the Helicity frame, respectively.
Differential J/PSI cross section from the di-electron and di-muon channel as a function of rapidity, the first error is statistical, the first systematic error is the correlated one, the second is the non-correlated one. The last four columns are the errors (in MUB/GEV) considering. Data in the first point of this table updated from the erratum.
Angular correlations between unidentified charged trigger ($t$) and associated ($a$) particles are measured by the ALICE experiment in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=2.76$ TeV for transverse momenta $0.25 < p_{T}^{t,\, a} < 15$ GeV/$c$, where $p_{T}^t > p_{T}^a$. The shapes of the pair correlation distributions are studied in a variety of collision centrality classes between 0 and 50% of the total hadronic cross section for particles in the pseudorapidity interval $|\eta| < 1.0$. Distributions in relative azimuth $\Delta\phi \equiv \phi^t - \phi^a$ are analyzed for $|\Delta\eta| \equiv |\eta^t - \eta^a| > 0.8$, and are referred to as "long-range correlations". Fourier components $V_{n\Delta} \equiv \langle \cos(n\Delta\phi)\rangle$ are extracted from the long-range azimuthal correlation functions. If particle pairs are correlated to one another through their individual correlation to a common symmetry plane, then the pair anisotropy $V_{n\Delta}(p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a)$ is fully described in terms of single-particle anisotropies $v_n (p_{T})$ as $V_{n\Delta}(p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a) = v_n(p_{T}^t) \, v_n(p_{T}^a)$. This expectation is tested for $1 \leq n \leq 5$ by applying a global fit of all $V_{n\Delta} (p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a)$ to obtain the best values $v_{n}\{GF\} (p_{T})$. It is found that for $2 \leq n \leq 5$, the fit agrees well with data up to $p_T^a \sim 3$-4 GeV/$c$, with a trend of increasing deviation as $p_{T}^t$ and $p_{T}^a$ are increased or as collisions become more peripheral. This suggests that no pair correlation harmonic can be described over the full $0.25 < p_{T} < 15$ GeV/$c$ range using a single $v_n(p_T)$ curve; such a description is however approximately possible for $2 \leq n \leq 5$ when $p_T^a < 4$ GeV/$c$. For the $n=1$ harmonic, however, a single $v_1(p_T$ curve is not obtained even within the reduced range $p_T^a < 4$ GeV/$c$.
Amplitudes of the VnDelta harmonics versus n for events with trigger particles having transverse momenta in the range 2-2.5 GeV and associated particles in the range 1.5-2.0 GeV for two centrality classes 0-2% and 2-10%. Note that in the paper the data are plotted multiplied by 100.
Amplitudes of the VnDelta harmonics versus n for events with trigger particles having transverse momenta in the range 2-2.5 GeV and associated particles in the range 1.5-2.0 GeV for three centrality classes 10-20%, 20-30% and 40-50%. Note that in the paper the data are plotted multiplied by 100.
Amplitudes of the VnDelta harmonics versus n for events with trigger particles having transverse momenta in the range 8-15 GeV and associated particles in the range 6-8 GeV for two centrality classes 40-50% and 0-20%. Note that in the paper the data are plotted multiplied by 100.
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