Mapping color fluctuations in the photon in ultraperipheral heavy ion collisions at the Large Hadron Collider


Abstract in English

We model effects of color fluctuations (CFs) in the light-cone photon wave function and for the first time make predictions for the distribution over the number of wounded nucleons $ u$ in the inelastic photon-nucleus scattering. We show that CFs lead to a dramatic enhancement of this distribution at $ u=1$ and large $ u > 10$. We also study the implications of different scales and CFs in the photon wave function on the total transverse energy $Sigma E_T$ and other observables in inelastic $gamma A$ scattering with different triggers. Our predictions can be tested in proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus ultraperipheral collisions at the LHC and will help to map CFs, whose first indications have already been observed at the LHC.

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