Strangeness and bulk freeze-out properties at RHIC.pdf

a r X i v : 0 7 1 0 .3 9 0 2 v 1 [ n u c l - e x ] 2 1 O c t 2 0 0 7 Strangeness and bulk freeze-out properties at RHIC A Iordanova (for the STAR Collaboration) Department of Physics (M/C 273), University of Illinois at Chicago, 845 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60607, USA E-mail: aiorda1@uic.edu Abstract. Identified charged kaon, pion, and proton spectra and ratios from √ s NN = 200 and 62.4 GeV Cu+Cu collisions are studied with a hydro-motivated blast-wave and a statistical model framework in order to explore the strangeness production at RHIC and characterize the bulk freeze-out properties of the created system. The spectra are measured at mid-rapidity (|y| 0.1) over the transverse momentum range of 0.25 p T 1.2 GeV/c with particle identification derived from the ionization energy loss in the STAR Time Projection Chamber. The multi-dimensional systematic study of π±, K±, p and p? production in Cu+Cu, Au+Au, d+Au and p+p collisions is used to discuss the energy, system size and inferred energy density dependence of freeze-out parameters and strangeness production. The new data from Cu+Cu collisions bridge the gap between the smaller d+Au and larger Au+Au systems, allowing a detailed study of the onset of strangeness equilibration at RHIC. PACS numbers: 25.75.-q,25.75.Dw Keywords: Strangeness, Low-p T , Heavy-ion collisions 1. Introduction Systematic studies of the QCD phase diagram [1] have been enriched by the addition of new RHIC data from Cu+Cu collisions at √ s NN = 200 and 62.4 GeV. The STAR experiment has measured identified particle spectra of π±, K±, protons and anti-protons at mid-rapidity |y| 0.1 over the transverse momentum range of 0.25 p T 0.80 GeV/c (pions and kaons) and 0.40 p T 1.20 GeV/c for (anti)protons. Comparative analysis to the previously measured spectra from Au+Au, d+Au and p+p collisions at RHIC [2, 4] is used to address the energy and system size effects on freeze-out properties and, particularly, on strangeness production.