Hanbury-Brown-Twiss measurements at large rapidity separations, or can we measure the proton radius in p-A collisions?

Abstract

We point out that current calculations of inclusive two-particle correlations in p-A collisions based on the Color Glass Condensate approach exhibit a contribution from Hanbury-Brown-Twiss correlations. These HBT correlations are quite distinct from the standard ones, in that they are apparent for particles widely separated in rapidity. The transverse size of the emitter which is reflected in these correlations is the gluonic size of the proton. This raises an interesting possibility of measuring the proton size directly by the HBT effect of particle pairs produced in p-A collisions.