Hard pion and prompt photon at RHIC, from single to double inclusive production

Abstract

Single pion and prompt photon large transverse momentum spectra in p-p and Au-Au collisions are computed in perturbative QCD at RHIC energy, s^1/2 = 200 GeV. Next-to-leading order calculations are discussed and compared with p-p scattering data. Subsequently, quenching factors are computed to leading order for both pions and photons within the same energy loss model. The good agreement with PHENIX preliminary data allows for a lower estimate of the energy density reached in central Au-Au collisions, epsilon > 10 GeV/fm^3. Double inclusive photon-pion production in p-p and Au-Au collisions is then addressed. Next-to-leading order corrections prove rather small in p-p scattering. In Au-Au collisions, the quenching of momentum-correlation spectra is seen to be sensitive to parton energy loss processes, which would help to understand how the fragmentation dynamics is modified in nuclear collisions at RHIC.