Flash of photons from the early stage of heavy ion collisions
Feb, 1998Citations per year
Abstract:
The dynamics of partonic cascades may be an important aspect for particle production in relativistic collisions of nuclei at CERN SPS and BNL RHIC energies. Within the Parton-Cascade Model, we estimate the production of single photons from such cascades due to scattering of quarks and gluons q g -> q gamma, quark-antiquark annihilation q qbar -> g gamma, or gamma gamma, and from electromagnetic brems-strahlung of quarks q -> q gamma. We find that the latter QED branching process plays the dominant role for photon production, similarly as the QCD branchings q -> q g and g -> g g play a crucial role for parton multiplication. We conclude therefore that photons accompanying the parton cascade evolution during the early stage of heavy-ion collisions shed light on the formation of a partonic plasma.Note:
- 4 pages including 3 postscript figures
- scattering: heavy ion
- lead
- sulfur
- model: parton
- model: cascade
- photon: emission
- quark gluon: scattering
- quark antiquark: annihilation
- bremsstrahlung
- quantum electrodynamics
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