Photon induced proton and anti-proton pair production with ultraperipheral heavy ion collisions at RHIC

TL;DR

This paper studies proton-antiproton pair production through photon-photon fusion in ultra-peripheral heavy ion collisions at RHIC, using a detailed formalism to predict distributions that can be tested in future experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a combined impact parameter and transverse momentum dependent formalism to model $par{p}$ production, considering multiple mechanisms, advancing theoretical understanding of photon-photon interactions.

Findings

Predicted differential distributions of $par p$ production.

Identified contributions of proton exchange, $s$-channel resonance, and hand-bag mechanisms.

Framework ready for comparison with future RHIC measurements.

Abstract

We investigate proton-antiproton ($p\bar{p}$) pair production via photon-photon fusion in the ultra-peripheral collisions at RHIC, employing a joint impact parameter and transverse momentum dependent formalism. We consider proton exchange, $s$-channel resonance and hand-bag mechanisms, predicting differential distributions of $p\bar p$ production. Our theoretical predictions can be tested against future measurements at RHIC, to enhance our understanding of photon-photon interactions in strong electromagnetic fields.