Heavy quark production at RHIC and LHC within a partonic transport model

TL;DR

This study uses the BAMPS partonic transport model to analyze charm and bottom quark production and evolution in heavy ion collisions at RHIC and LHC, highlighting the sensitivity to initial conditions and quark masses.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive simulation of heavy quark dynamics in quark-gluon plasma, including the effects of initial conditions, quark masses, and production mechanisms.

Findings

Charm production negligible at RHIC, significant at LHC with sensitivity to initial conditions.

Bottom production in quark-gluon plasma is negligible at both RHIC and LHC.

Heavy quark yields depend strongly on initial gluon conditions and quark masses.

Abstract

The production and space-time evolution of charm and bottom quarks in nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC and LHC are investigated with the partonic transport model BAMPS (Boltzmann Approach of MultiParton Scatterings). Heavy quarks, produced in primary hard parton scatterings during nucleon-nucleon collisions, are sampled using the Monte Carlo event generator PYTHIA or the leading order mini-jet model in conjunction with the Glauber model, revealing a strong sensitivity on the parton distribution functions, scales, and heavy quark mass. In a comprehensive study exploring different charm masses, K factors, and possible initial gluon conditions, secondary production and the evolution of heavy quarks are examined within a fully dynamic BAMPS simulation for central heavy ion collisions at RHIC and LHC. Although charm production in the quark-gluon plasma can be neglected at RHIC, it is significant at LHC but very sensitive to the initial conditions and the charm mass. Bottom production in the quark-gluon plasma, however, is negligible both at RHIC and LHC.