Correlations of Electrons from Heavy Flavor Decay with Hadrons at PHENIX

Abstract

One unexpected recent result from heavy-ion collisions is the large suppression and elliptic flow of electrons from heavy flavor decay. Further measurements of properties of electrons from heavy flavor decay are crucial to understanding the origin of this suppression and its implications for the properties of the hot matter produced at RHIC. Two particle correlations have been used extensively to study the propagation of hard partons through the produced matter in heavy-ion collisions. Measurements in p+p collisions are important both as reference for heavy ion measurements and to study heavy flavor production and fragmentation in the vacuum. Preliminary results of correlations between electrons from heavy flavor decay with charged hadrons from p+p collisions are shown.