Measurement of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays in p-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=5.02 TeV

Abstract

The production of electrons from heavy-flavour hadron decays was measured as a function of transverse momentum (p(T)) in minimum-bias p-Pb collisions at root s(NN) = 5.02 TeV using the ALICE detector at the LHC. The measurement covers the p(T) interval 0.5 <p(T) <12 GeV/c and the rapidity range -1.065 <y(cms) <0.135 in the centre-of-mass reference frame. The contribution of electrons from background sources was subtracted using an invariant mass approach. The nuclear modification factor R-pPb was calculated by comparing the p(T)-differential invariant cross section in p-Pb collisions to a pp reference at the same centre-of-mass energy, which was obtained by interpolating measurements at root s = 2.76 TeV and root s= 7 TeV. The R-pPb is consistent with unity within uncertainties of about 25 which become larger for p(T) below 1 GeV/c. The measurement shows that heavy-flavour production is consistent with binary scaling, so that a suppression in the high-p(T) yield in Pb-Pb collisions has to be attributed to effects induced by the hot medium produced in the final state. The data in p-Pb collisions are described by recent model calculations that include cold nuclear matter effects. (C) 2015 CERN for the benefit of the ALICE Collaboration. Published by Elsevier B.V.