Event texture search for phase transitions in Pb+Pb collisions

Summary, in English

NA44 uses a 512-channel Si pad array covering 1.5<eta<3.3 to study charged hadron production in 158A GeV Pb+Pb collisions at the CERN SPS. We apply a multiresolution analysis, based on a discrete wavelet transformation, to probe the texture of particle distributions event by event, allowing a simultaneous localization of features in space and scale. Scanning a broad range of multiplicities, we search for signals of clustering and of critical behavior in the power spectra of local density fluctuations. The data are compared with detailed simulations of detector response, using heavy-ion event generators, and with a reference sample created via event mixing. An upper limit is set on the probability and magnitude of dynamical fluctuations.

• Author: I Bearden; H Boggild; J Boissevain; L Conin; J Dodd; B Erazmus; S Esumi; CW Fabjan; D Ferenc; DE Fields; A Franz; JJ Gaardhoje; AG Hansen; O Hansen; D Hardtke; H van Hecke; EB Holzer; TJ Humanic; P Hummel; BV Jacak; R Jayanti; K Kaimi; M Kaneta; T Kohama; ML Kopytine; M Leltchouk; A Ljubicic; Bengt Lörstad; N Maeda; L Martin; A Medvedev; M Murray; H Ohnishi; G Paic; SU Pandey; F Piuz; J Pluta; V Polychronakos; M Potekhin; G Poulard; D Reichhold; A Sakaguchi; J Schmidt-Sorensen; J Simon-Gillo; W Sondheim; T Sugitate; JP Sullivan; Y Sumi; WJ Willis; KL Wolf; N Xu; DS Zachary
• Department/s: Particle and nuclear physics
• Publishing year: 2002
• Language: English
• Publication/Series: Physical Review C (Nuclear Physics)
• Volume: 65
• Issue: 4
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.65.044903
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: American Physical Society
• Topic: Subatomic Physics
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 0556-2813