Parton recombination at all $p_T$

Abstract

Hadron production at all $p_T$ in heavy-ion collisions in the framework of parton recombination is reviewed. It is shown that the recombination of thermal and shower partons dominates the hadron spectra in the intermediate $p_T$ region. In $d+Au$ collisions, the physics of particle production at any $\eta$ is basically the same as at $\eta=0$. The Cronin effect is described as a result of the final-state instead of the initial-state interaction. The suppression of $R_{CP}$ at high $\eta$ is due to the reduction of the soft parton density on the deuteron side, thus resulting in less pions produced by recombination, an explanation that requires no new physics. In $Au+Au$ collisions large $p/\pi$ ratio is obtained because the thermal partons can contribute to the formation of proton more than they do to the pion.