Nuclear modification of electron spectra and implications for heavy quark energy loss in Au + Au collisions at root s(NN)=200 GeV
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Abstract
The PHENIX experiment has measured midrapidity (vertical bar eta vertical bar < 0.35) transverse momentum spectra (0.4 < p(T)< 5.0 GeV/c) of electrons as a function of centrality in Au+Au collisions at root s(NN) = 200 GeV. Contributions from photon conversions and from light hadron decays, mainly Dalitz decays of pi(0) and eta mesons, were removed. The resulting nonphotonic electron spectra are primarily due to the semileptonic decays of hadrons carrying heavy quarks. Nuclear modification factors were determined by comparison to nonphotonic electrons in p+p collisions. A significant suppression of electrons at high p(T) is observed in central Au+Au collisions, indicating substantial energy loss of heavy quarks.
Comments
This article is published as Adler, S. S., S. Afanasiev, C. Aidala, N. N. Ajitanand, Y. Akiba, J. Alexander, R. Amirikas et al. "Nuclear modification of electron spectra and implications for heavy quark energy loss in Au+ Au collisions at S N N= 200 GeV." Physical Review Letters 96, no. 3 (2006): 032301. DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.96.032301. Posted with permission.