Measurements of azimuthal anisotropy of nonprompt D$^0$ mesons in PbPb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV

Abstract

Measurements of the elliptic ($v_2$) and triangular ($v_3$) azimuthal anisotropy coefficients are presented for D$^0$ mesons produced in b hadron decays (nonprompt D$^0$ mesons) in lead-lead collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV. The results are compared with previously published charm meson anisotropies measured using prompt D$^0$ mesons. The data were collected with the CMS detector in 2018 with an integrated luminosity of 0.58 nb$^{-1}$. Azimuthal anisotropy is sensitive to the interactions of quarks with the hot and dense medium created in heavy ion collisions. Comparing results for prompt and nonprompt D$^0$ mesons can assist in understanding the mass dependence of these interactions. The nonprompt results show lower magnitudes of $v_2$ and $v_3$ and weaker dependences on the meson transverse momentum and collision centrality than those found for prompt D$^0$ mesons. The results are in agreement with theoretical predictions that include a mass dependence in the interactions of quarks with the medium.