High transverse momentum eta meson production in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 GeV

dc.creatorPHENIX Collaboration
dc.creatorAdler, S. S.
dc.date2006-11-06
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T12:00:01Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T12:00:01Z
dc.descriptionInclusive transverse momentum spectra of eta mesons in the range p_T~2-12 GeV/c have been measured at mid-rapidity (|η| < 0,35) by the PHENIX experiment at RHIC in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 GeV. The eta mesons are reconstructed through their eta--> γγchannel for the three colliding systems as well as through the eta-->pi^0 pi+ pi- decay mode in p+p and d+Au collisions. The nuclear modification factor in d+Au collisions, R_dAu(p_T~1.0-1.1, suggests at most only modest p_T broadening ("Cronin enhancement"). In central Au+Au reactions, the eta yields are significantly suppressed, with R_AuAu(pT)~0.2. The ratio of eta to pi^0 yields is approximately constant as a function of p_T for the three colliding systems in agreement with the high-p_T world average of R_eta/pi^0 \approx 0.5 in hadron-hadron, hadron-nucleus, and nucleus-nucleus collisions for a wide range of center-of-mass energies [sqrt(s_NN)~3-1800 GeV] as well as, for high scaled momentum x_p, in e+e- annihilations at sqrt(s)=91.2 GeV. These results are consistent with a scenario where high-p_T eta production in nuclear collisions at RHIC is largely unaffected by initial-state effects, but where light-quark mesons (pi^0;eta) are equally suppressed due to final-state interactions of the parent partons in the dense medium produced in Au+Au reactions.
dc.description391 authors, NN pages text, RevTeX4, figures, tables. Submitted to Physical Review C. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.html
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0611006
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0611006
dc.identifierPhys.Rev.C75:024909,2007
dc.identifierdoi:10.1103/PhysRevC.75.024909
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/206765
dc.subjectNuclear Experiment
dc.titleHigh transverse momentum eta meson production in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 GeV
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