Statistical hadronization of heavy flavor quarks in elementary collisions: successes and failures

TL;DR

This paper evaluates the statistical hadronization model's effectiveness in describing heavy flavor hadron production in elementary collisions, finding success with open heavy flavor but failure with quarkonia, impacting our understanding of quarkonium production.

Contribution

It demonstrates the model's limitations in describing quarkonium production in elementary collisions, highlighting the need for alternative approaches.

Findings

Open heavy flavor hadron production is well described by the model.

Quarkonium production cannot be explained within the same framework.

Implications for understanding quarkonium production in nucleus-nucleus collisions.

Abstract

We analyze recently compiled data on the production of open heavy flavor hadrons and quarkonia in e+e- as well as pp and p-nucleus collisions in terms of the statistical hadronization model. Within this approach the production of open heavy flavor hadrons is well described with parameters deduced from a thermal analysis of light flavor hadron production. In contrast, quarkonium production in such collisions cannot be described in this framework. We point out the relevance of this finding for our understanding of quarkonium production in ultra-relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions.