No Arabic abstract
We present the $p_{T}$ spectra, elliptic flow ($v_2$) and coalescence parameters $B_{2}$ for $d$, $bar{d}$ ($1<p_{T}<4$ GeV/c) and $B_{3}$ for $^{3}He$, $bar{^{3}He}$ ($2<p_{T}<6$ GeV/c) produced at mid-rapidity in Au+Au col lisions at $sqrt{s_{_{NN}}} = 200$ GeV. The results are measured in the STAR experiment at RHIC. The spectra of the light nuclei show softer $p_T$ distributions than calculations from a blast-wave model in which the parameters were fixed from pion, kaon and proton $v_2$($p_T$) and $p_T$ distributions. The coalescence volume is found to track with pion HBT re sults for different collision geometries. The $v_2$ measurement for $d(overline{d})$ as a function of transverse momentum $p_T$ is found to follow an approximate atomic mass number ($A$) scaling while that of $^{3}He(bar{^{3}He}) $ deviates slightly from the scaling. A negative $v_{2}$ has been observed for $bar{d}$ at low $p_{T}$, consiste nt with large radial flow in Au+Au collisions.
We present the first measurement of elliptic ($v_2$) and triangular ($v_3$) flow in high-multiplicity $^{3}$He$+$Au collisions at $sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=200$ GeV. Two-particle correlations, where the particles have a large separation in pseudorapidity, are compared in $^{3}$He$+$Au and in $p$$+$$p$ collisions and indicate that collective effects dominate the second and third Fourier components for the correlations observed in the $^{3}$He$+$Au system. The collective behavior is quantified in terms of elliptic $v_2$ and triangular $v_3$ anisotropy coefficients measured with respect to their corresponding event planes. The $v_2$ values are comparable to those previously measured in $d$$+$Au collisions at the same nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy. Comparison with various theoretical predictions are made, including to models where the hot spots created by the impact of the three $^{3}$He nucleons on the Au nucleus expand hydrodynamically to generate the triangular flow. The agreement of these models with data may indicate the formation of low-viscosity quark-gluon plasma even in these small collision systems.
We present measurements of the transverse-momentum dependence of elliptic flow $v_2$ for identified pions and (anti)protons at midrapidity ($|eta|<0.35$), in 0%--5% central $p$$+$Au and $^3$He$+$Au collisions at $sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=200$ GeV. When taken together with previously published measurements in $d$$+$Au collisions at $sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=200$ GeV, the results cover a broad range of small-collision-system multiplicities and intrinsic initial geometries. We observe a clear mass-dependent splitting of $v_2(p_{T})$ in $d$$+$Au and $^3$He$+$Au collisions, just as in large nucleus-nucleus ($A$$+$$A$) collisions, and a smaller splitting in $p$$+$Au collisions. Both hydrodynamic and transport model calculations successfully describe the data at low $p_T$ ($< 1.5$ GeV/$c$), but fail to describe various features at higher $p_T$. In all systems, the $v_2$ values follow an approximate quark-number scaling as a function of the hadron transverse kinetic energy per constituent quark($KE_T/n_q$), which was also seen previously in $A$$+$$A$ collisions.
Asymmetric nuclear collisions of $p$$+$Al, $p$$+$Au, $d$$+$Au, and $^{3}$He$+$Au at $sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=200$ GeV provide an excellent laboratory for understanding particle production, as well as exploring interactions among these particles after their initial creation in the collision. We present measurements of charged hadron production $dN_{rm ch}/deta$ in all such collision systems over a broad pseudorapidity range and as a function of collision multiplicity. A simple wounded quark model is remarkably successful at describing the full data set. We also measure the elliptic flow $v_{2}$ over a similarly broad pseudorapidity range. These measurements provide key constraints on models of particle emission and their translation into flow.
There is strong evidence for the formation of small droplets of quark-gluon plasma in $p/d/^{3}$He+Au collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and in $p$+$p$/Pb collisions at the Large Hadron Collider. In particular, the analysis of data at RHIC for different geometries obtained by varying the projectile size and shape has proven insightful. In the present analysis, we find excellent agreement with the previously published PHENIX at RHIC results on elliptical and triangular flow with an independent analysis via the two-particle correlation method, which has quite different systematic uncertainties and an independent code base. In addition, the results are extended to other detector combinations with different kinematic (pseudorapidity) coverage. These results provide additional constraints on contributions from nonflow and longitudinal decorrelations.
Recently the PHENIX Collaboration has made available two-particle correlation Fourier coefficients for multiple detector combinations in minimum bias p+p and 0-5% central p+Au, d+Au, 3He+Au collisions at 200 GeV [1]. Using these coefficients for three sets of two-particle correlations, azimuthal anisotropy coefficients $v_2$ and $v_3$ are extracted for midrapidity charged hadrons as a function of transverse momentum. In this paper, we use the available coefficients to explore various non-flow hypotheses as well as compare the results with theoretical model calculations. The non-flow methods fail basic closure tests with AMPT and PYTHIA/ANGANTYR, particularly when including correlations with particles in the low multiplicity light-projectile going direction. In data, the non-flow adjusted $v_2$ results are modestly lower in p+Au and the adjusted $v_3$ results are more significantly higher in p+Au and d+Au. However, the resulting higher values for the ratio $v_3/v_2$ in p+Au at RHIC compared to p+Pb at the LHC is additional evidence for a significant over-correction. Incorporating these additional checks, the conclusion that these flow coefficients are dominated by initial geometry coupled with final-state interactions (e.g.~hydrodynamic expansion of quark-gluon plasma) remains true, and explanations based on initial-state glasma are ruled out. The detailed balance between intrinsic and fluctuation-driven geometry and the exact role of weakly versus strongly-coupled pre-hydrodynamic evolution remains an open question for triangular flow, requiring further theoretical and experimental investigation.