Inclusive b-jet production in heavy ion collisions at the LHC

TL;DR

This paper provides theoretical predictions for b-jet production attenuation in heavy ion collisions at the LHC, aiming to enhance understanding of heavy quark energy loss mechanisms in dense QCD matter.

Contribution

It offers the first detailed predictions of b-jet quenching patterns at high transverse momentum, highlighting their potential to reveal heavy flavor dynamics in the medium.

Findings

Attenuation of b-jet cross sections is similar to light jets at pT > 75 GeV.

Mass and hadronization effects are negligible at high pT.

Predictions will be useful for interpreting upcoming experimental data.

Abstract

Theoretical and experimental advances in understanding light jet production and modification in Pb+Pb reactions at a center-of-mass energy 2.76 TeV have been a highlight of the LHC heavy ion program. At the same time, the detailed mechanisms of heavy quark energy loss in dense QCD matter are not yet fully understood. With this motivation, we present theoretical predictions for the nuclear-induced attenuation of the differential cross sections for inclusive b-jet production in heavy ion collisions at the LHC for comparison to upcoming data. We find that for transverse momenta pT > 75 GeV both hadronization and mass effects are negligible and this attenuation is comparable to the one observed for light jets. We discuss how the detailed b-jet quenching patterns can be used to gain new insight into the in-medium heavy flavor dynamics.