Nuclear Shadowing Effects on Prompt Photons at RHIC and LHC

Abstract

The transverse momentum distribution of prompt photons coming from the very early phase of ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions for the RHIC and LHC energies is calculated by means of perturbative QCD. We calculate the single photon cross section ($A+B\to \gamma +X$) by taking into account the partonic sub processes $q+\bar{q}\to \gamma +g$ and $q+g\to \gamma +q$ as well as the Bremsstrahlung corrections to those processes. We choose a lower momentum cut-off $k_0=2$ GeV separating the soft physics from perturbative QCD. We compare the results for those primary collision with the photons produced in reactions of the thermalized secondary particles, which are calculated within scaling hydrodynamics. The QCD processes are taken in leading order. Nuclear shadowing corrections, which alter the involved nuclear structure functions are explicitly taken into account and compared to unshadowed results. Employing the GRV parton distribution parametrizations we find that at RHIC prompt QCD-photons dominate over the thermal radiation down to transverse momenta $k_T\approx 2$ GeV. At LHC, however, thermal radiation from the QGP dominates for photon transverse momenta $k_T\le 5$ GeV, if nuclear shadowing effects on prompt photon production are taken into account.

15 pages, Latex, 10 eps-figures

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