Correlation between the charged kaon ratio and the baryon phase-space density in heavy-ion collisions

Abstract

It is found that the baryon phase-space density obtained from the ratio of deuteron to proton yields is nearly constant over centrality in Au+Au collisions at the AGS. The finding offers an explanation for the puzzling centrality independence of the ratio of charged kaon total yields. The correlation between the charged kaon ratio and the average baryon phase-space density is studied for central heavy-ion collisions of various systems over a wide range of beam energy. It is found that the charged kaon ratio and the average baryon phase-space density both increase with decreasing beam energy, and are strongly correlated. Such study may provide a new approach to search for medium effect on the kaon mass.