Proceedings of Dielectron production in pp and Pb-Pb collisions with ALICE in Run 3, Quark Matter 2025

Abstract

The measurement of dielectron production is a fundamental piece of the puzzle in the understanding of the hot and dense matter produced in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The dielectron spectrum provides information that penetrates the veil of final-state hadronic interactions and gives direct access to the early phases of the collision. However, the interpretation of the measured spectra relies on a precise understanding of all the contributing sources. The measurement of dielectron production in proton-proton collisions, collected with the upgraded ALICE detector at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13.6 TeV is presented together with the status of the Pb-Pb analysis at $\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}}$ = 5.36 TeV. In particular, the extraction of prompt (and non-prompt) dielectron spectra over a wide mass range is explained. In addition it is discussed, in which way such analysis could help to understand the Drell-Yan process in a non-perturbative regime and to investigate the onset of thermal radiation.