Deuteron production mechanism via azimuthal correlation for p - p and p-Pb collisions at LHC energy with the AMPT model

The study on light nuclei provides information not only for the production mechanism but also for the interactions between nucleons and other particles in the medium. Recently the ALICE Collaboration presented the deuteron transverse momentum spectra in p -p collisions at vs = 13 TeV as well as in p-Pb collisions at vs(NN) = 5.02 TeV. Using a multiphase transport model with a string melting mechanism and a coalescence afterburner, we successfully reproduce the transverse momentum spectra of deuterons and obtain the conditional yields of deuterons and protons. According to the coalescence model, we predict that there is a nucleon number scaling between the conditional yield ratios of deuterons to protons and the inclusive yield ratios, which is similar to the constituent nucleon number scaling for elliptic flow. It is also foreseen that the near-side suppression in the correlation function may occur as that in two-baryon azimuthal correlations.

Automated summary

The study examines light nuclei to understand both the production mechanism and the interactions between nucleons and other particles in the medium. The ALICE Collaboration recently presented data on the transverse momentum spectra of deuterons in p-p collisions at vs = 13 TeV and p-Pb collisions at vs(NN) = 5.02 TeV. Using a multiphase transport model with a string melting mechanism and a coalescence afterburner, the study successfully reproduces the transverse momentum spectra of deuterons and obtains the conditional yields of deuterons and protons. According to the coalescence model, it is predicted that there is a scaling relationship between the conditional yield ratios of deuterons to protons and the inclusive yield ratios, similar to the constituent nucleon number scaling for elliptic flow. The study also foresees the possibility of near-side suppression in the correlation function, similar to two-baryon azimuthal correlations.