System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions

D.SosnovJr.The CMS Collaboration

doi:10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679

System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions

D.SosnovJr.The CMS Collaboration

CERN
Marietta Blau Institute for Particle Physics
University of Antwerp
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Université libre de Bruxelles
Université catholique de Louvain
Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Físicas
Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro
Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho
Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski
Universidad de Tarapacá
Universidad Técnica Federico Santa Maria
Beihang University
Tsinghua University
CAS - Institute of High Energy Physics
Peking University
South China Normal University
Sun Yat-Sen University
University of Science and Technology of China
Shandong University
CAS - Institute of Modern Physics
Zhejiang University
Universidad de los Andes Colombia
Universidad de Antioquia
University of Split
Ruder Boskovic Institute
University of Cyprus
Charles University
Escuela Politécnica Nacional
Universidad San Francisco de Quito
Academy of Scientific Research and Technology
Al-Fayoum University
National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Tallinn
University of Helsinki
Helsinki Institute of Physics
Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology
Université Paris-Saclay
IN2P3-CNRS
Institut Pluridisciplinaire - Hubert Curien (IPHC)
CNRS/IN2P3-Univ Mediterranee
RWTH Aachen University
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Demokritos National Centre for Scientific Research
National Technical University of Athens
University of Ioannina
University of Debrecen
Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar
Panjab University
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University of Canterbury
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AGH University of Krakow
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Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

High-energy partons lose energy while propagating through the hot, strongly interacting medium produced in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions, leading to a suppression of particle production at high transverse momentum (p _T). The dependence of this energy loss on the size of the colliding nuclear system has yet to be firmly established experimentally. This Letter presents a systematic study of charged-particle suppression across four different nucleus-nucleus collision systems using nuclear modification factors (R _AA) measured by the CMS Collaboration at the CERN LHC. Previous CMS measurements of R _AA in oxygen-oxygen, xenon-xenon, and lead-lead collisions are recast with identical p _T intervals and are complemented by the first measurement of the charged-particle R _AA in neon-neon collisions at [b]s_NN=5.36TeV. The neon-neon data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 0.76nb⁻¹. The R _AA in all collision systems examined show similar qualitative trends as a function of p _T, but have a magnitude which is ordered with the nucleon number A . The R _AA feature a downward slope at low p _T, a local minimum at around 5–7GeV, and an upward slope with increasing p _T. The R _AA are also compared in terms of A ^1/3, which is proportional to the nuclear radius. Models including only initial-state nuclear effects fail to reproduce the observed trends, whereas energy loss models reproduce the trends in the region p_T'9.6GeV.

Original language	English
Article number	140679
Journal	Physics Letters, Section B: Nuclear, Elementary Particle and High-Energy Physics
Volume	880
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679
Publication status	Published - Sept 2026
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

CMS
Heavy ions
Jet quenching
Light ions
Quark-gluon plasma

Access to Document

10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679

Cite this

@article{e49225248fd848a79681880b47527152,

title = "System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions",

abstract = "High-energy partons lose energy while propagating through the hot, strongly interacting medium produced in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions, leading to a suppression of particle production at high transverse momentum (p T). The dependence of this energy loss on the size of the colliding nuclear system has yet to be firmly established experimentally. This Letter presents a systematic study of charged-particle suppression across four different nucleus-nucleus collision systems using nuclear modification factors (R AA) measured by the CMS Collaboration at the CERN LHC. Previous CMS measurements of R AA in oxygen-oxygen, xenon-xenon, and lead-lead collisions are recast with identical p T intervals and are complemented by the first measurement of the charged-particle R AA in neon-neon collisions at [b]sNN=5.36TeV. The neon-neon data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 0.76nb−1. The R AA in all collision systems examined show similar qualitative trends as a function of p T, but have a magnitude which is ordered with the nucleon number A . The R AA feature a downward slope at low p T, a local minimum at around 5{\textendash}7GeV, and an upward slope with increasing p T. The R AA are also compared in terms of A 1/3, which is proportional to the nuclear radius. Models including only initial-state nuclear effects fail to reproduce the observed trends, whereas energy loss models reproduce the trends in the region pT'9.6GeV.",

keywords = "CMS, Heavy ions, Jet quenching, Light ions, Quark-gluon plasma",

author = "\{D.SosnovJr.The CMS Collaboration\} and A. Belyaev and A. Gevorgyan and A. Hayrapetyan and A. Tumasyan and W. Adam and L. Benato and T. Bergauer and M. Dragicevic and S. Gundacker and Guven, \{A. K.\} and Hussain, \{P. S.\} and M. Jeitler and N. Krammer and A. Li and D. Liko and M. Matthewman and J. Schieck and R. Sch{\"o}fbeck and M. Shooshtari and M. Sonawane and \{Van Den Bossche\}, N. and W. Waltenberger and Wulz, \{C. E.\} and T. Janssen and H. Kwon and \{Ocampo Henao\}, D. and \{Van Laer\}, T. and \{Van Mechelen\}, P. and D. Ahmadi and J. Bierkens and N. Breugelmans and S. Dansana and \{De Moor\}, A. and M. Delcourt and C. Gupta and F. Heyen and Y. Hong and K. Kang and P. Kashko and S. Lowette and I. Makarenko and S. Nandakumar and S. Tavernier and M. Tytgat and \{Van Onsem\}, \{G. P.\} and \{Van Putte\}, S. and D. Vannerom and T. Wybouw and A. Beshr and O. Bouhali",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2026 The Authors.",

year = "2026",

month = sep,

doi = "10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679",

language = "English",

volume = "880",

journal = "Physics Letters, Section B: Nuclear, Elementary Particle and High-Energy Physics",

issn = "0370-2693",

publisher = "Elsevier B.V.",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions

AU - D.SosnovJr.The CMS Collaboration

AU - Belyaev, A.

AU - Gevorgyan, A.

AU - Hayrapetyan, A.

AU - Tumasyan, A.

AU - Adam, W.

AU - Benato, L.

AU - Bergauer, T.

AU - Dragicevic, M.

AU - Gundacker, S.

AU - Guven, A. K.

AU - Hussain, P. S.

AU - Jeitler, M.

AU - Krammer, N.

AU - Li, A.

AU - Liko, D.

AU - Matthewman, M.

AU - Schieck, J.

AU - Schöfbeck, R.

AU - Shooshtari, M.

AU - Sonawane, M.

AU - Van Den Bossche, N.

AU - Waltenberger, W.

AU - Wulz, C. E.

AU - Janssen, T.

AU - Kwon, H.

AU - Ocampo Henao, D.

AU - Van Laer, T.

AU - Van Mechelen, P.

AU - Ahmadi, D.

AU - Bierkens, J.

AU - Breugelmans, N.

AU - Dansana, S.

AU - De Moor, A.

AU - Delcourt, M.

AU - Gupta, C.

AU - Heyen, F.

AU - Hong, Y.

AU - Kang, K.

AU - Kashko, P.

AU - Lowette, S.

AU - Makarenko, I.

AU - Nandakumar, S.

AU - Tavernier, S.

AU - Tytgat, M.

AU - Van Onsem, G. P.

AU - Van Putte, S.

AU - Vannerom, D.

AU - Wybouw, T.

AU - Beshr, A.

AU - Bouhali, O.

PY - 2026/9

Y1 - 2026/9

N2 - High-energy partons lose energy while propagating through the hot, strongly interacting medium produced in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions, leading to a suppression of particle production at high transverse momentum (p T). The dependence of this energy loss on the size of the colliding nuclear system has yet to be firmly established experimentally. This Letter presents a systematic study of charged-particle suppression across four different nucleus-nucleus collision systems using nuclear modification factors (R AA) measured by the CMS Collaboration at the CERN LHC. Previous CMS measurements of R AA in oxygen-oxygen, xenon-xenon, and lead-lead collisions are recast with identical p T intervals and are complemented by the first measurement of the charged-particle R AA in neon-neon collisions at [b]sNN=5.36TeV. The neon-neon data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 0.76nb−1. The R AA in all collision systems examined show similar qualitative trends as a function of p T, but have a magnitude which is ordered with the nucleon number A . The R AA feature a downward slope at low p T, a local minimum at around 5–7GeV, and an upward slope with increasing p T. The R AA are also compared in terms of A 1/3, which is proportional to the nuclear radius. Models including only initial-state nuclear effects fail to reproduce the observed trends, whereas energy loss models reproduce the trends in the region pT'9.6GeV.

AB - High-energy partons lose energy while propagating through the hot, strongly interacting medium produced in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions, leading to a suppression of particle production at high transverse momentum (p T). The dependence of this energy loss on the size of the colliding nuclear system has yet to be firmly established experimentally. This Letter presents a systematic study of charged-particle suppression across four different nucleus-nucleus collision systems using nuclear modification factors (R AA) measured by the CMS Collaboration at the CERN LHC. Previous CMS measurements of R AA in oxygen-oxygen, xenon-xenon, and lead-lead collisions are recast with identical p T intervals and are complemented by the first measurement of the charged-particle R AA in neon-neon collisions at [b]sNN=5.36TeV. The neon-neon data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 0.76nb−1. The R AA in all collision systems examined show similar qualitative trends as a function of p T, but have a magnitude which is ordered with the nucleon number A . The R AA feature a downward slope at low p T, a local minimum at around 5–7GeV, and an upward slope with increasing p T. The R AA are also compared in terms of A 1/3, which is proportional to the nuclear radius. Models including only initial-state nuclear effects fail to reproduce the observed trends, whereas energy loss models reproduce the trends in the region pT'9.6GeV.

KW - CMS

KW - Heavy ions

KW - Jet quenching

KW - Light ions

KW - Quark-gluon plasma

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105045069531

U2 - 10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679

DO - 10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140679

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:105045069531

SN - 0370-2693

VL - 880

JO - Physics Letters, Section B: Nuclear, Elementary Particle and High-Energy Physics

JF - Physics Letters, Section B: Nuclear, Elementary Particle and High-Energy Physics

M1 - 140679

ER -

System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions

Abstract

Keywords

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