Pseudorapidity distributions for proton-nucleus interactions are presented. The data cover twelve nuclei ranging from carbon to uranium and three incident proton momenta, 50, 100, and 200 GeV/c.

In an inclusive experiment, isotopically resolved fragments, 3≤Z≤13, produced in high-energy proton-nucleus collisions have been studied using a low mass time-of-flight, gas ΔE-silicon E spectrometer and an internal gas jet. Measurement of the kinetic energy spectra from 5 to 100 MeV enabled an accurate determination of fragment cross sections from both xenon and krypton targets. Fragment spectra showed no significant dependence on beam energy for protons between 80 and 350 GeV/c. The observed isobaric yield is given by YαAf−τ, where τ∼2.6 for both targets; this also holds for correlated fragment data. The power law is the signature for the fragment formation mechanism. We treat the formation of fragments as a liquid-gas transition at the critical point. The critical temperature Tc can be determined from the fragment isotopic yields, provided one can set an energy scale for the fragment free energy. The high energy tails of the kinetic energy spectra provide evidence that the fragments originate from a common remnant system somewhat lighter than the target which disassembles simultaneously via Coulomb repulsion into a multibody final state. Fragment Coulomb energies are about 110 of the tangent sphere values. The remnant is characterized by a parameter T, obtained from the high energy tails of the kinetic energy distributions. T is interpreted as reflecting the Fermi momentum of a nucleon in this system. Since T≫Tc, and T is approximately that value expected for a cold nucleus, we conclude that the kinetic energy spectra are dominated by this nonthermal contribution. [NUCLEAR REACTIONS Xe(p,X), Kr(p,X), 80≤Eq≤350 GeV; measured σ(E,θ), X=Li to Al, θ=34∘. Fragmentation.]

The prompt D$^0$ meson azimuthal anisotropy coefficients, $v_2$ and $v_3$, are measured at midrapidity ($|y| < 1.0$) in PbPb collisions at a center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = $5.02 TeV per nucleon pair with data collected by the CMS experiment. The measurement is performed in the transverse momentum ($p_\mathrm{T}$) range of 1 to 40 GeV/c, for central and midcentral collisions. The $v_2$ coefficient is found to be positive throughout the $p_\mathrm{T}$ range studied. The first measurement of the prompt D$^0$ meson $v_3$ coefficient is performed, and values up to 0.07 are observed for $p_\mathrm{T}$ around 4 GeV/c. Compared to measurements of charged particles, a similar $p_\mathrm{T}$ dependence, but smaller magnitude for $p_\mathrm{T} < $6 GeV/c, is found for prompt D$^0$ meson $v_2$ and $v_3$ coefficients. The results are consistent with the presence of collective motion of charm quarks at low $p_\mathrm{T}$ and a path length dependence of charm quark energy loss at high $p_\mathrm{T}$, thereby providing new constraints on the theoretical description of the interactions between charm quarks and the quark-gluon plasma.

The first observation of top quark production in proton-nucleus collisions is reported using proton-lead data collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of sqrt(s[NN]) = 8.16 TeV. The measurement is performed using events with exactly one isolated electron or muon and at least four jets. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 174 inverse nanobarns. The significance of the tt-bar signal against the background-only hypothesis is above five standard deviations. The measured cross section is sigma[tt-bar] = 45 +/- 8 nb, consistent with predictions from perturbative quantum chromodynamics.

Data from heavy ion collisions suggest that the evolution of a parton shower is modified by interactions with the color charges in the dense partonic medium created in these collisions, but it is not known where in the shower evolution the modifications occur. The momentum ratio of the two leading partons, resolved as subjets, provides information about the parton shower evolution. This substructure observable, known as the splitting function, reflects the process of a parton splitting into two other partons and has been measured for jets with transverse momentum between 140 and 500 GeV, in pp and PbPb collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 5.02 GeV per nucleon pair. In central PbPb collisions, the splitting function indicates a more unbalanced momentum ratio, compared to peripheral PbPb and pp collisions. The measurements are compared to various predictions from event generators and analytical calculations.

Event-by-event fluctuations in the elliptic-flow coefficient $v_2$ are studied in PbPb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_\text{NN}}} = 5.02$ TeV using the CMS detector at the CERN LHC. Elliptic-flow probability distributions ${p}(v_2)$ for charged particles with transverse momentum 0.3$< p_\mathrm{T} <$3.0 GeV and pseudorapidity $| \eta | <$ 1.0 are determined for different collision centrality classes. The moments of the ${p}(v_2)$ distributions are used to calculate the $v_{2}$ coefficients based on cumulant orders 2, 4, 6, and 8. A rank ordering of the higher-order cumulant results and nonzero standardized skewness values obtained for the ${p}(v_2)$ distributions indicate non-Gaussian initial-state fluctuation behavior. Bessel-Gaussian and elliptic power fits to the flow distributions are studied to characterize the initial-state spatial anisotropy.

The transverse momentum ($p_\mathrm{t}$) spectrum of prompt D$^0$ mesons and their antiparticles has been measured via the hadronic decay channels D$^0 \to \mathrm{K}^- \pi^+$ and $\overline{\mathrm{D}}^0 \to \mathrm{K}^+ \pi^-$ in pp and PbPb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 5.02 TeV per nucleon pair with the CMS detector at the LHC. The measurement is performed in the D$^0$ meson $p_\mathrm{t}$ range of 2-100 GeV and in the rapidity range of $|y| < $1. The pp (PbPb) dataset used for this analysis corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 27.4 pb$^{-1}$ (530 $\mu$b$^{-1}$). The measured D$^0$ meson $p_\mathrm{t}$ spectrum in pp collisions is well described by perturbative QCD calculations. The nuclear modification factor, comparing D$^0$ meson yields in PbPb and pp collisions, was extracted for both minimum-bias and the 10% most central PbPb interactions. For central events, the D$^0$ meson yield in the PbPb collisions is suppressed by a factor of 5-6 compared to the pp reference in the $p_\mathrm{t}$ range of 6-10 GeV. For D$^0$ mesons in the high-$p_\mathrm{t}$ range of 60-100 GeV, a significantly smaller suppression is observed. The results are also compared to theoretical calculations.

Measurements of azimuthal angle and transverse momentum ($p_\mathrm{T}$) correlations of isolated photons and associated jets are reported for pp and PbPb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{\mathrm{NN}}}} =$ 5.02 TeV. The data were recorded with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC. For events containing a leading isolated photon with $p_\mathrm{T}^\gamma >$ 40 GeV$/c$ and an associated jet with $p_\mathrm{T}^\text{jet} >$ 30 GeV$/c$, the photon+jet azimuthal correlation and $p_\mathrm{T}$ imbalance in PbPb collisions are studied as functions of collision centrality and $p_\mathrm{T}^\gamma$. The results are compared to pp reference data collected at the same collision energy and to predictions from several theoretical models for parton energy loss. No evidence of broadening of the photon+jet azimuthal correlations is observed, while the ratio $p_\mathrm{T}^\text{jet}/p_\mathrm{T}^\gamma$ decreases significantly for PbPb data relative to the pp reference. All models considered agree within uncertainties with the data. The number of associated jets per photon with $p_\mathrm{T}^\gamma >$ 80 GeV$/c$ is observed to be shifted towards lower $p_\mathrm{T}^\text{jet}$ values in central PbPb collisions compared to pp collisions.

The azimuthal anisotropy Fourier coefficients ($v_n$) in 8.16 TeV pPb data are extracted via long-range two-particle correlations as a function of event multiplicity and compared to corresponding results in pp and PbPb collisions. Using a four-particle cumulant technique, $v_n$ correlations are measured for the first time in pp and pPb collisions. The $v_2$ and $v_4$ coefficients are found to be positively correlated in all collision systems. For high multiplicity pPb collisions an anticorrelation of $v_2$ and $v_3$ is observed, with a similar correlation strength as in PbPb data at the same multiplicity. The new correlation results strengthen the case for a common origin of the collectivity seen in pPb and PbPb collisions in the measured multiplicity range.

Charge-dependent azimuthal correlations of same- and opposite-sign pairs with respect to the second- and third-order event planes have been measured in pPb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} =$ 8.16 TeV and PbPb collisions at 5.02 TeV with the CMS experiment at the LHC. The measurement is motivated by the search for the charge separation phenomenon predicted by the chiral magnetic effect (CME) in heavy ion collisions. Three- and two-particle azimuthal correlators are extracted as functions of the pseudorapidity difference, the transverse momentum ($p_\mathrm{t}$) difference, and the $p_\mathrm{t}$ average of same- and opposite-charge pairs in various event multiplicity ranges. The data suggest that the charge-dependent three-particle correlators with respect to the second- and third-order event planes share a common origin, predominantly arising from charge-dependent two-particle azimuthal correlations coupled with an anisotropic flow. The CME is expected to lead to a $v_2$-independent three-particle correlation when the magnetic field is fixed. Using an event shape engineering technique, upper limits on the $v_2$-independent fraction of the three-particle correlator are estimated to be 13% for pPb and 7% for PbPb collisions at 95% confidence level. The results of this analysis, both the dominance of two-particle correlations as a source of the three-particle results and the similarities seen between PbPb and pPb, provide stringent constraints on the origin of charge-dependent three-particle azimuthal correlations and challenge their interpretation as arising from a chiral magnetic effect in heavy ion collisions.