arXiv subjects

Benjamin Dönigus

Publications and source records attributed to Benjamin Dönigus.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Charmed nuclei and exotic charmed meson production at CBM@FAIR and ALICE@LHC

We make predictions for the expected multiplicities of exotic charmed hadrons and charmed nuclei in Au+Au collisions at SIS100 and LHC beam energies, using input on light hadron and charm production from the UrQMD transport model, and applying the Thermal-FIST model. We demonstrate that the CBM experiment has the capability to explore these states with production rates of one per 3 seconds for $χ_{c0}(1P)$ and $χ_{c1}(1P)$, and one every 3 minutes for $X(3872)$ at the expected data taking rates. Due to the higher baryon density at CBM compared to the LHC, charmed nuclei, if they exist, will be equally abundant at CBM as at the LHC, even though the total charm production at CBM is much lower.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2025

Nonequilibrium Phenomenology of Identified Particle Spectra in Heavy-Ion Collisions at LHC Energies

We employ the Zubarev approach of the non-equilibrium statistical operator to investigate the enhancement of the low-$p_T$ region of pion spectra, introducing an effective pion chemical potential to describe the overpopulation of low-energy pion states. We test a corresponding freeze-out approach by analyzing the transverse-momentum spectra of identified particles measured recently with high precision by the ALICE Collaboration in Pb+Pb collisions at CERN LHC. A blast-wave model and a blast-wave-based particle generator, coupled to a hadronic transport model, are utilized. Bayesian inference methods are applied to extract the most probable sets of thermodynamic parameters at the chemical freeze-out hypersurface. Both models for the overpopulated pion states, the hadronic transport model and the thermal model with a nonzero pion chemical potential, provide a satisfactory description of the observed pion spectra. However, both approaches contain approximations which can be improved within a systematic nonequilibrium approach. We demonstrate that the introduction of a nonequilibrium pion chemical potential offers an efficient alternative to the conventional explanation of the low-$p_T$ enhancement, typically attributed to resonance decays with subsequent thermalization. A similar discussion holds also for the kaon spectra.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2024

Diquarks and the production of charmed baryons

Utilizing a quark model characterized by parameters that effectively replicate the masses of ground state hadrons, we illustrate that $(us)$ or $(ds)$ diquarks exhibit greater compactness in comparison to $(ud)$ diquarks. Concretely, the binding energy of the $(us)$ diquark - defined as the diquark's mass minus the combined masses of its individual quarks - is found to be stronger than that of the $(ud)$ diquark. This heightened attraction present in $(us)$ diquarks could lead to enhanced production of $Ξ_c/D$ particles in high-energy pp or ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2023

Energy dependence of light hypernuclei production in heavy-ion collisions from a coalescence and statistical-thermal model perspective

A comparison of light hypernuclei production, from UrQMD+coalescence and the thermal model, in heavy ion collisions over a wide range of beam energies and system sizes is presented. We find that both approaches provide generally similar results, with differences in specific details. Especially the ratios of hypertriton to $Λ$ are affected by both the source radius $Δr$ of the coalescence procedure as well as canonical effects. On the other hand, the double ratio $S_3$ is almost independent of canonical effects, which is in contrast to coalescence. Thus, both the beam energy dependence and centrality dependence of $S_3$ can be used to constrain the hypertriton source radius. To do so the currently available data is not yet sufficient. Elliptic flow is shown to be unaffected by the source size of the nuclei and an almost perfect mass scaling of the elliptic flow is observed. Our predictions further suggest that the existence of the H-dibaryon ($ΛΛ$) seems ruled out by ALICE data.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2022

Deuteron yields from LHC: Continuum correlations and in-medium effects

To explain the production of light nuclei in heavy-ion collisions at extreme energies, we focus on the deuteron case. A Gibbs ensemble at chemical freeze-out is a prerequisite to investigate the non-equilibrium evolution of the expanding fireball. Quantum statistical approaches allow to describe correlations including bound state formation in the strongly interacting and hot system. We consider the virial approach to evaluate proton-neutron correlations. In generalization of the treatment of protons in pionic matter (pion-proton puzzle), the influence of the pion environment on deuteron-like correlations is evaluated using data for the pion-deuteron scattering phase shifts. Calculated yields for deuteron production are compared with the ones observed at the LHC.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2020

Feeddown contributions from unstable nuclei in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

We estimate the feeddown contributions from decays of unstable $A = 4$ and $A = 5$ nuclei to the final yields of protons, deuterons, tritons, $^3$He, and $^4$He produced in relativistic heavy-ion collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} > 2.4$ GeV, using the statistical model. The feeddown contribution effects do not exceed 5% at LHC and top RHIC energies due to the large penalty factors involved, but are substantial at intermediate collision energies. We observe large feeddown contributions for tritons, $^3$He, and $^4$He at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} \lesssim 10$ GeV, where they may account for as much as 70% of the final yield at the lower end of the collision energies considered. Sizable ($>10$%) effects for deuteron yields are observed at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} \lesssim 4$ GeV. The results suggest that the excited nuclei feeddown cannot be neglected in the ongoing and future analysis of light nuclei production at intermediate collision energies, including HADES and CBM experiments at FAIR, NICA at JINR, RHIC beam energy scan and fixed-target programmes, and NA61/SHINE at CERN. We further show that the freeze-out curve in the $T$-$μ_B$ plane itself is affected significantly by the light nuclei at high baryochemical potential.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2020

Suppression of light nuclei production in collisions of small systems at the Large Hadron Collider

We show that the recently observed suppression of the yield ratio of deuteron to proton and of helium-3 to proton in p+p collisions compared to those in p+Pb or Pb+Pb collisions by the ALICE Collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) can be explained if light nuclei are produced from the coalescence of nucleons at the kinetic freeze-out of these collisions. This suppression is attributed to the non-negligible sizes of deuteron and helium-3 compared to the size of the nucleon emission source in collisions of small systems, which reduces the overlap of their internal wave functions with those of nucleons. The same model is also used to study the production of triton and hypertriton in heavy-ion collisions at the LHC. Compared to helium-3 in events of low charged particle multiplicity, the triton is less suppressed due to its smaller size and the hypertriton is even more suppressed as a result of its much larger size.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2020

Light nuclei in the hadron resonance gas

The description of the production of light (anti-)(hyper-)nuclei in a hadron resonance gas, or statistical-thermal model approach, has proven to be rather successful, despite the fact that the binding energies of these compound objects are small compared to the emitting fireball temperature. We summarise some recent developments and findings in this approach.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2019

Canonical statistical model analysis of p-p, p-Pb, and Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC

The system-size dependence of hadrochemistry at vanishing baryon density is considered within the canonical statistical model (CSM) with local exact conservation of three conserved charges, allowing for a possibility of strangeness undersaturation, i.e. $γ_S \leq 1$. Exact baryon number conservation is found to be even more important than that of strangeness in the canonical suppression picture at the LHC, in contrast to intermediate and low collision energies. The model is applied to p-p, p-Pb, and Pb-Pb data of the ALICE collaboration. A chemical equilibrium CSM with a fixed $T_{\rm ch} = 155$ MeV describes the trends seen in most yield ratios. However, this vanilla version of CSM predicts an enhancement of the $ϕ/π$ ratio at smaller multiplicities, in stark contrast to the suppression seen in the data. The data are described with a 15% relative accuracy level whence a multiplicity dependence of both the temperature and the strangeness saturation parameter $γ_S \leq 1$ is accepted. Both the canonical suppression and the strangeness undersaturation effects are small at $d N_{\rm ch} / dη\gtrsim 100$, but they do improve substantially the description of hadron yields in p-p collisions, in particular the $Ω$ yields. A possibility to constrain the rapidity correlation volume using net-proton fluctuation measurements is pointed out.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2018

Loosely-bound objects produced in nuclear collisions at the LHC

Loosely-bound objects such as light nuclei are copiously produced in proton-proton and nuclear collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), despite the fact that typical energy scales in such collisions exceed the binding energy of the objects by orders of magnitude. In this review we summarise the experimental observations, put them into context of previous studies at lower energies, and discuss the underlying physics. Most of the data discussed here were taken by the ALICE Collaboration during LHC Run1, which started in 2009 and ended in 2013. Specifically we focus on the production of (anti-)nuclei and (anti-)hypernuclei. Also included are searches for exotic objects like the H-dibaryon, a possible $uuddss$ hexaquark state, or also a possible bound state of a $Λ$ hyperon and a neutron. Furthermore, the study of hyperon-nucleon and hyperon-hyperon interactions through measurements of correlations are briefly discussed, especially in connection with the possible existence of loosely-bound states composed of these baryons. In addition, some results in the strange and charmed hadron sector are presented, to show the capabilities for future measurements on loosely-bound objects in this direction. Finally, perspectives are given for measurements in the currently ongoing Run2 period of the LHC and in the future LHC Run3.

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