Diffractive structure functions in nuclei

TL;DR

This paper calculates proton and nuclear diffractive structure functions using the IPsat dipole model, emphasizing the importance of impact parameter dependence for understanding diffraction phenomena in nuclei.

Contribution

It extends the IPsat dipole model to nuclear diffractive structure functions, highlighting the role of impact parameter dependence in these calculations.

Findings

Good agreement with HERA data for inclusive F_2 and vector meson measurements

Impact parameter dependence is crucial for accurate diffraction analysis

Provides a framework for future nuclear diffraction studies

Abstract

We calculate proton and nuclear diffractive structure functions in the IPsat (Kowalski-Teaney) dipole model. This parametrization has previously been shown to provide good agreement with inclusive F_2 measurements and exclusive vector meson measurements at HERA. We discuss how the impact parameter dependence crucially affects our analysis, in particular for small beta.