We investigate the gluonic probe to the nucleon-nucleon short range correlation (SRC) in nucleus through heavy flavor production in deep inelastic scattering (DIS). The relevant EMC effects of $F_2^{c\bar c}$ structure function will provide a universality test of the SRCs which have been extensively studied in the quark-channel. These SRCs can also be studied through the sub-threshold production of heavy flavor in $eA$ collisions at the intermediate energy electron-ion collider, including open Charm and $J/ψ$ ($Υ$) production.
Gluonic degrees of freedom play an important role in the masses of the eta and etaprime mesons. We discuss eta- and etaprime-nucleon and nucleus interactions where this glue may be manifest. Interesting processes being studied in experiments are etaprime production in proton-nucleon collisions close to threshold and possible eta-nucleus bound-states.
The Parton-Hadron-String-Dynamics (PHSD) transport model is used to study the impact on the choice of initial degrees of freedom on the final hadronic and electromagnetic observables in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 200 GeV. We find that a non-perturbative system of massive gluons (scenario I) and a system dominated by quarks and antiquarks (scenario II) lead to different hadronic observables when imposing the same initial energy-momentum tensor $T_{μν}(x)$ just after the passage of the impinging nuclei. In case of the gluonic initial condition the formation of $s,{\bar s}$ pairs in th…
The goal of this paper is to extend the results of Ref. [1], where formulae were derived for gluonic radiation for a high energy nucleus colliding with a classical colored particle. In Ref. [1], we computed the amplitudes for radiation in the fragmentation region of the particle for a dilute gluonic field. In this paper, we compute the radiation by solving the fluctuation equations of the dense background field in a specific gauge which makes it simple to solve the asymptotic radiation from an initial condition immediately after the passage of the nucleus. We identify and compute two component…
Currently, the long-standing issue concerning the size of the gluonic content of the eta' and eta mesons remains unsettled. With this in mind we consider the central exclusive production (CEP) of eta', eta meson pairs in the perturbative regime, applying the Durham pQCD-based model of CEP and the `hard exclusive' formalism to evaluate the meson production subprocess. We calculate for the first time the relevant parton-level processes gg --> qqbar gg and gg --> gggg, where the final-state gg and qqbar pairs form a pseudoscalar flavour-singlet state. We observe that these amplitudes display some…
We show how exclusive vector meson production off light ions can be used to probe the spatial distribution of small-$x$ gluons in the deuteron and $^3$He wave functions. In particular, we demonstrate how short range repulsive nucleon-nucleon interactions affect the predicted coherent $J/Ψ$ production spectra. Fluctuations of the nucleon substructure are shown to have a significant effect on the incoherent cross section above $|t|\gtrsim 0.2\,\mathrm{GeV}^2$. By explicitly performing the JIMWLK evolution, we predict the $x$-dependence of coherent and incoherent cross sections in the EIC energy …
We argue that, because of the peculiar properties of the $η'$ meson, it is a promising probe of "chiral" dynamics. In particular, we show that a rotating gluon-dominated plasma might lead to an enhanced production of $η'$ w.r.t. statistical model expectations. The presence of a strong topological susceptibility might give a similar effect. In both cases, unlike the statistical model,we expect a non-trivial dependence on event geometry, such as initial volume and impact parameter. Hence, an observation of $η'/π^0$ ratio depending strongly on impact parameter might be a good indication of chiral…
It is shown that odd harmonic azimuthal correlations, including the directed flow $v_1$, in forward two-particle production in peripheral proton-nucleus ($pA$) collisions can arise simply from the radial nuclear profile of a large nucleus. This requires consideration of the C-odd part of the gluonic generalized transverse momentum dependent (GTMD) correlator of nucleons in the nucleus. The gluonic GTMD correlator is the Fourier transform of an off-forward hadronic matrix element containing gluonic field strength tensors that are connected by gauge links. It is parametrized in terms of various …
We study the associated production of $ J/ψ + γ$ in fixed-target experiments with nuclear targets as well as at the relativistic heavy-ion collider (RHIC). We find that this process affords a very clean probe of $ρ_g$, the ratio of gluon density in a heavy nucleus to that of a proton. The combined $x$ range thus available can be used to discriminate between the predictions of different models of the EMC effect for $ρ_g$.
The physics of the initial conditions of heavy ion collisions is dominated by the nonlinear gluonic interactions of QCD. These lead to the concepts of parton saturation and the Color Glass Condensate (CGC). We discuss recent progress in calculating multi-gluon correlations in this framework, prompted by the observation that these correlations are in fact easier to compute in a dense system (nucleus-nucleus) than a dilute one (proton-proton).
We propose to use charged-current neutrino-nucleus interactions as a probe of the many virtual transitions involved in neutrinoless double-beta decay. By performing neutrino and anti-neutrino interaction studies on the initial and final nucleus respectively, one can get information on the two branches involved in the double-beta decay process. The measurement of such reactions could help to further constrain double-beta decay predictions on the half-lives.
The physics of the initial conditions of heavy ion collisions is dominated by the nonlinear gluonic interactions of QCD. These lead to the concepts of parton saturation and the Color Glass Condensate (CGC). We discuss recent progress in calculating multi-gluon correlations in this framework, prompted by the observation that these correlations are in fact easier to compute in a dense system (nucleus-nucleus) than a dilute one (proton-proton).
We discuss the prospects of using jets as precision probes in electron-nucleus collisions at the future Electron-Ion Collider. Jets produced in deep-inelastic scattering can be calibrated by a measurement of the scattered electron. Such electron-jet "tag and probe" measurements call for an approach that is orthogonal to most HERA jet measurements as well as previous studies of jets at the future EIC. We present observables such as the electron-jet momentum balance, azimuthal correlations and jet substructure, which can provide constraints on the parton transport coefficient in nuclei. We compa…
We investigate charged-current neutrino-nucleus deep inelastic scattering with particular interests in relationship of short range correlation (SRC) and EMC effect. The structure functions $F^A_2(x,Q^2)$, $x F^A_3(x,Q^2)$ and ratios of differential cross sections are presented where the nuclei $A$ are chosen to be carbon, iron and lead. We propose a kind of universal modification functions which would provide a nontrivial test of SRC universality on the platform of neutrino-nucleus scattering and improve our understanding of nucleon structure substantially.
Partonic matter produced in the early stage of ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions is assumed to be composed mainly of gluons, and quarks and antiquarks are produced at later times. To study the implications of such a scenario, the dynamical evolution of a chemically nonequilibrated system is described by the ideal (2+1)-dimensional hydrodynamics with a time dependent (anti)quark fugacity. The equation of state interpolates linearly between the lattice data for the pure gluonic matter and the lattice data for the chemically equilibrated quark-gluon plasma. The spectra and elliptic flo…
Lepton flavor-violating processes offer interesting possibilities to probe new physics at multi-TeV scale. We discuss those in the framework of effective field theory, emphasizing the role of gluonic operators. Those operators are obtained by integrating out heavy quarks that are kinematically inaccessible at the scale where low-energy experiments take place and make those experiments sensitive to the couplings of lepton flavor changing neutral currents to heavy quarks. We discuss constraints on the Wilson coefficients of those operators from the muon conversion $μ^- + (A,Z) \to e^- + (A,Z)$ a…
Transverse momentum spectra of the reaction products from proton-proton and nucleus-nucleus collisions are discussed within the phenomenological frameworks of statistical phase-space and string fragmentation models. It will be shown that a string fragmentation model can accommodate all of the observations discussed here and consequently it is claimed that no conclusion about the thermal nature or collective expansion of the created system may be derived from observed transverse momentum spectra.
The coherent contribution of all neutrons in neutrino nucleus scattering due to the neutral current is examined considering the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) as a source of neutrinos. SNS is a prolific pulsed source of electron and muon neutrinos as well as muon antineutrinos.
The present knowledge on hard processes in the context of heavy ion collisions is reviewed, with particular emphasis on J/psi production. The p-A data on charmonia production from Fermilab experiments is shown to be in excelent agreement with the p-A data collected at CERN. The simultaneous analysis of all existing p-A data reaches a precision which allows us to rule out some preconceived ideas, setting a good frame against which the data collected with ion beams at CERN can be compared.
In a fully relativistic approach, a RLSM description of nuclei colliding at ultra-relativistic energies can be formulated within the framework of a classical transport theory. The valence quarks of the nucleons are described through collections of classical point-like particles moving in the continuum. They are coupled to soft gluon fields which are described through the Yang Mills equations on a gauge lattice. In a first step, we focus on the range of low-$p_t$ interactions. Results from numerical model simulations of pure gluonic nucleus-nucleus collisions on SU(2) gauge lattices in 3+1 dime…
We apply the Color Glass Condensate formalism to photon $+$ hadron production cross section in high energy deuteron (proton)-gold collisions at RHIC. We investigate the dependence of the production cross section on the angle between the produced hadron and photon for various rapidities and transverse momenta. It is shown that the angular correlation between the produced hadron and photon is a sensitive probe of the saturation dynamics.
Atomic Parity Violation (APV) is usually quantified in terms of the weak nuclear charge $Q_W$ of a nucleus, which depends on the coupling strength between the atomic electrons and quarks. In this work, we review the importance of APV to probing new physics using effective field theory. Furthermore, using $SU(2)$ invariance, we correlate our findings with those from neutrino-nucleus coherent scattering. Moreover, we investigate signs of parity violation in polarized electron scattering and show how precise measurements on the Weinberg angle, $\sin θ_W$, will give rise to competitive bounds on l…
We discuss experimental features of identified particle production from nucleus-nucleus collisions. These features reflect hadronization from a deconfined partonic matter whose particle formation scheme is distinctly different from fragmentation phenomenology in elementary collisions. Multi-parton dynamics, such as quark coalescences or recombinations, appear to be essential to explain the experimental measurements at the intermediate transverse momentum of 2--5 GeV/c. Constituent quarks seem to be the dominant degrees of freedom at hadronization. Heavy quark production should help quantify de…
We suggest that $e\to μ$ conversion in low-energy electron-nucleus scattering is a new and potentially observable indirect signal of supersymmetry and should be searched for in experiment. We estimate the rate for this process in a straightforward calculation taking into account the existing constraint from non-observation of the $μ\to eγ$ decay and find the cross-section to be $σ< 10^{-8} $fb.
We study glueball $G$ production in gluonic penguin decay $B\to G + X_s$, using the next-to-leading order $b\to s g^*$ gluonic penguin interaction and effective couplings of a glueball to two perturbative gluons. Subsequent decays of a scalar glueball are described by using techniques of effective chiral Lagrangian to incorporate the interaction between a glueball and pseudoscalar mesons. Mixing effects between the pure glueball with other mesons are considered. Identifying the $f_0(1710)$ to be a scalar glueball, we find that both the top and charm penguin to be important and obtain a sizable…
We predict that the mean transverse momentum of charged hadrons $\langle p_t\rangle$ rises as a function of the charged-particle multiplicity in ultracentral nucleus-nucleus collisions. We explain that this phenomenon has a simple physical origin and represents an unambiguous prediction of the hydrodynamic framework of heavy-ion collisions. We argue that the relative increase of $\langle p_t \rangle$ is proportional to the speed of sound squared $c_s^2$ of the quark-gluon plasma. Based on the value of $c_s^2$ from lattice QCD, we expect $\langle p_t\rangle$ to increase by approximately $18$ Me…
The measurement of the production of particles coming from hard scattering processes covers a fundamental role in the characterization of the system formed in heavy-ion collisions, allowing to probe the microscopic processes underlying the interaction of high energy partons with the medium. An impressive amount of measurements related to jet, quarkonia, open heavy flavor, and electroweak signal production in nucleus-nucleus as well as p(d)-nucleus collisions was delivered by experiments at RHIC and LHC in past years. In these proceedings, the main experimental results presented during the Hard…
Inclusive production of $J/ψ$ mesons, especially at forward rapidities, is an important probe of small-x gluons in protons and nuclei. In this paper we re-evaluate the production cross sections in the Color Glass Condensate framework, where the process is described by a large x gluon from the probe splitting into a quark pair and eikonally interacting with the target proton or nucleus. Using a standard collinear gluon distribution for the probe and an up to date dipole cross section fitted to HERA data to describe the target we achieve a rather good description of the cross section in proton-p…
We examine the current constraints and future sensitivity of Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering (CE$ν$NS) experiments to mixing scenarios involving a $Z^\prime$ which interacts via portals with the Standard Model. We contrast the results against those from fixed target, atomic parity violation, and solar neutrino experiments. We demonstrate a significant dependence of the experimental reach on the $Z'$ coupling non-universality and the complementarity of CE$ν$NS to existing searches.
We study the distribution of gluons in transverse space in the nucleon at moderately small x (~10^{-2}). At large transverse distances (impact parameters) the gluon density is generated by the 'pion cloud' of the nucleon, and can be calculated in terms of the gluon density in the pion. We investigate the large-distance behavior in two different approaches to chiral dynamics: i) phenomenological soft-pion exchange, ii) the large-N_c picture of the nucleon as a classical soliton of the pion field, which corresponds to degenerate N and Delta states. The large-distance contributions from the 'pion…
Vector meson production in ultra-peripheral pA and AA collisions at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) are very sensitive to Parton Distribution Functions (PDF) as well as to their leading-order, next-to-leading-order, and medium corrections. This process is a complimentary tool to explore the effects of different PDFs in particle production in proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus central collisions. Existing and forthcoming data available, e.g., from ALICE and CMS, may be used in conjunction with our theoretical predictions to constrain the PDFs. We make predictions for rapidity distributions…
A general QCD light front formalism to compute many-body color charge correlation functions due to quarks in the proton was constructed~\cite{Dumitru:2018vpr}. These enable new studies of color charge distributions in the nucleon. The analogies between such correlation functions to electric and magnetization charge densities in the proton and also to nucleon-nucleon correlations in the nucleus are discussed. Including the color charge correlations leads naturally to the removal of infrared divergences that occurs in two- and three-gluon exchange interactions in $q\bar q$-proton scattering. Ext…
We compute the differential cross-section for inclusive prompt photon$+$quark production in deeply inelastic scattering of electrons off nuclei at small $x$ ($e+A$ DIS) in the framework of the Color Glass Condensate effective field theory. The result is expressed as a convolution of the leading order (in the strong coupling $α_{\mathrm{s}}$) impact factor for the process and universal dipole matrix elements, in the limit of hard photon transverse momentum relative to the nuclear saturation scale $Q_{s,A}(x)$. We perform a numerical study of this process for the kinematics of the Electron-Ion C…
We propose the use of N-jettiness (τ_N), a global event shape variable, as a probe of nuclear dynamics in lepton-nucleus collisions. It characterizes the amount of soft radiation between the jet and nuclear beam directions. We write down the factorization for the 1-jettiness ($τ_1$) distribution for the production of a single hard jet (J) in lepton-nucleus collisions: \ell+A(P) \to J(P_{J})+X. Each nuclear target gives rise to a unique pattern radiation, determined by nuclear dynamics, that can be quantified by the τ_1-distribution. Up to power corrections, the τ_1-distribution allows for a di…
Heavy nuclei at collider energies are a source of high energy Weizsaecker-Williams photons. This photon flux may be utilized to study high energy photon-nucleus interactions. Here we concentrate on the coherent diffractive production of heavy vector mesons on nuclear targets and show how it probes the unintegrated glue of the nucleus in the saturation domain. We present predictions for rapidity distributions of exclusive coherent J/Psi and Upsilon mesons which can be measured by the ALICE experiment at the LHC.
An experimental overview of the energy dependence of strangeness production is presented. The strange hadrons are considered a good probe to study the QCD matter created in relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions. The heavy-ion experiments at SPS, RHIC, and LHC have recorded a wealth of data in proton-proton, proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions at several beam energies. In this proceeding, I discuss the invariant yield and azimuthal anisotropy measurement of strange hadrons in nucleus-nucleus collisions at SPS, RHIC, and LHC.
Forward $J/ψ$ production and suppression in high energy proton-nucleus collisions can be an important probe of gluon saturation. In an earlier work we studied this process in the Color Glass Condensate framework and showed that using the Glauber approach to extrapolate the dipole cross section of a proton to a nucleus leads to results closer to experimental data than previous calculations in this framework. Here we investigate the centrality dependence of the nuclear suppression in this model and show a comparison of our results with recent LHC data.
After a short summary of the predictions of the Parton Quenching Model (PQM) for the nuclear modification factor and its centrality dependence in Au-Au collisions at RHIC, we concentrate on back-to-back jet-like correlations at high transverse momentum. We illustrate how this probe is biased by the surface effect.
We investigate the potential to probe new neutrino physics with future experiments measuring coherent neutrino-nucleus scattering. Experiments with high statistics should become feasible soon and allow to constrain parameters with unprecedented precision. Using a benchmark setup for a future experiment probing reactor neutrinos, we study the sensitivity on neutrino non-standard interactions and new exotic neutral currents (scalar, tensor, etc). Compared to Fermi interaction, percent and permille level strengths of the new interactions can be probed, superseding for some observables the limits …
Quarkonium has long been proposed as one of the golden probes to identify the phase transition from confined hadronic matter to the deconfined quark-gluon plasma in heavy-ion collisions. Since then, we have achieved a better understanding, not only about the propagation of quarkonium in-medium, but also about its production. Recent theoretical developments in our comprehension of the quarkonium production mechanism in proton-proton collisions and on the propagation of quarkonia in proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions are reviewed and discussed.
We re-evaluate the nuclear suppression of forward $J/ψ$ production at high energy in the Color Glass Condensate framework. We use the collinear approximation for the projectile proton probed at large $x$ and an up to date dipole cross section fitted to HERA data to describe the target in proton-proton collisions. We show that using the Glauber approach to generalize the proton dipole cross section to the case of a nucleus target leads to a nuclear modification factor much closer to LHC data than previous estimates using the same framework.
Deep Inelastic Scattering (DIS) experiments at the planned Electron-Ion Collider will be affected by details of the hadron formation inside the nuclear volume. Besides semi-inclusive particle production experiments decays of the target nucleus via emission of neutrons provide an additional opportunity to probe this domain. This paper reports on the hybrid dynamical+statistical calculations of low-energy neutron production in muon- and virtual photon-induced collisions with nuclei. We confirm the conclusion that the E665 data on neutron production in $μ^-$ + Pb DIS at 470 GeV indicate a strong …
The production of dileptons with an invariant mass in the range 1 GeV < M < 5 GeV provides unique insight into the approach to thermal equilibrium in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions. In this mass range, they are produced through the annihilation of quark-antiquark pairs in the early stages of the collision. They are sensitive to the anisotropy of the quark momentum distribution, and also to the quark abundance, which is expected to be underpopulated relative to thermal equilibrium. We take into account both effects based on recent theoretical developments in QCD kinetic theory, an…
We study single inclusive hadron production in proton-proton and proton-nucleus collisions in the CGC framework. The parameters in the calculation are obtained by fitting electron-proton deep inelastic scattering data. The obtained dipole-proton amplitude is generalized to dipole-nucleus scattering without any additional nuclear parameters other than the Woods-Saxon distribution. We show that it is possible to use an initial condition without an anomalous dimension and still obtain a good description of the HERA inclusive cross section and LHC single particle production measurements. We argue …
We study single inclusive hadron production in proton-proton and proton-nucleus collisions in the CGC framework. The parameters in the calculation are determined solely by standard nuclear geometry and by electron-proton deep inelastic scattering data, which is fit using the running coupling BK equation. We show that it is possible to obtain a good fit of the HERA inclusive cross section also without an anomalous dimension in the initial condition. We argue that one must consistently use the proton transverse area as measured by a high virtuality probe in DIS also for the single inclusive cros…
An impact parameter dependent unintegrated gluon distribution is constructed as a solution of a nonlinear evolution equation with realistic Glauber--Gribov input. Photon--jet correlations in the proton fragmentation region of pA collisions are proposed as a direct probe of the nuclear unintegrated glue.
Deep inelastic scattering on nuclei at the Electron-Ion Collider will open new opportunities to investigate the structure of matter. Heavy flavor-tagged jets are complementary probes of the partonic composition and transport coefficients of large nuclei, but introduce a new mass scale that modifies the structure of parton showers and must be carefully accounted for in perturbative calculations. In the framework of soft-collinear effective theory with Glauber gluon interactions, we present the first calculation of inclusive charm-jet and bottom-jet cross sections in electron-nucleus collisions …
QCD predicts that strongly interacting matter will undergo a transition from a state of hadronic constituents to a plasma of unbound quarks and gluons. We first survey the conceptual features of this transition and its description in finite temperature lattice QCD, before we address its experimental investigation through high energy nucleus-nucleus collisions. After considering the conditions achievable in such collisions, we discuss the possible probes to check if the produced medium in its early stages was indeed deconfined. We then elaborate the method that has emerged and the results which…
Dimensional analysis reveals general kinematic scaling rules for the momentum, mass, and energy dependence of Drell-Yan and quarkonium cross sections. Their application to mid-rapidity LHC data provides strong experimental evidence supporting the validity of the factorization ansatz, a cornerstone of non-relativistic QCD, still lacking theoretical demonstration. Moreover, data-driven patterns emerge for the factorizable long-distance bound-state formation effects, including a remarkable correlation between the S-wave quarkonium cross sections and their binding energies. Assuming that this scal…
We review standard and non-standard neutrino physics probes that are based on nuclear measurements. We pay special attention on the discussion of prospects to extract new physics at prominent rare event measurements looking for neutrino-nucleus scattering, such as the coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CE$ν$NS) that may involve lepton flavor violation (LFV) in neutral-currents (NC). For the latter processes several appreciably sensitive experiments are currently pursued or have been planed to operate in the near future, like the COHERENT, CONUS, CONNIE, MINER, TEXONO, RED100, vGEN, …
