Centrality dependence of the nuclear modification factor of charged pions, kaons, and protons in Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=2.76 TeV


Adam J., Adamova D., Aggarwal M. M., Rinella G. A., Agnello M., Agrawal N., ...More

PHYSICAL REVIEW C, vol.93, no.3, 2016 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 93 Issue: 3
  • Publication Date: 2016
  • Doi Number: 10.1103/physrevc.93.034913
  • Journal Name: PHYSICAL REVIEW C
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Bursa Uludag University Affiliated: No

Abstract

Transverse momentum (p(T)) spectra of pions, kaons, and protons up to p(T) = 20 GeV/c have been measured in Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN) = 2.76 TeV using the ALICE detector for six different centrality classes covering 0%-80%. The proton-to-pion and the kaon-to-pion ratios both show a distinct peak at p(T) approximate to 3 GeV/c in central Pb-Pb collisions that decreases for more peripheral collisions. For p(T) > 10 GeV/c, the nuclear modification factor is found to be the same for all three particle species in each centrality interval within systematic uncertainties of 10%-20%. This suggests there is no direct interplay between the energy loss in the medium and the particle species composition in the hard core of the quenched jet. For p(T) < 10 GeV/c, the data provide important constraints for models aimed at describing the transition from soft to hard physics.