Quenching of photon and pion spectra at intermediate RHIC energy

Understand

Single prompt photon and pion spectra in p-p and Au-Au collisions at intermediate RHIC energy, s^1/2 = 62.4 GeV, are computed at large transverse momentum in perturbative QCD.

• Next-to-leading order calculations in p-p scattering are first presented.
• The quenching of the prompt photon and pion yield due to energy loss processes in central Au-Au with respect to p-p collisions is then predicted.
• At this energy, the small phase-space available to produce hard partons makes the pion quenching almost as pronounced as at s^1/2 = 200 GeV, despite the smaller gluon density of the produced medium.