Measurement of electrons from open heavy-flavor hadron decays in Au+Au collisions at √sNN = 200 GeV with the STAR detector

Abstract

We report a new measurement of the production of electrons from open heavy-flavor hadron decays (HFEs) at mid-rapidity (|y| < 0.7) in Au+Au collisions at sNN = 200 GeV. Invariant yields of HFEs are measured for the transverse momentum range of 3.5 < p T < 9 GeV/c in various configurations of the collision geometry. The HFE yields in head-on Au+Au collisions are suppressed by approximately a factor of 2 compared to that in p + p collisions scaled by the average number of binary collisions, indicating strong interactions between heavy quarks and the hot and dense medium created in heavy-ion collisions. Comparison of these results with models provides additional tests of theoretical calculations of heavy quark energy loss in the quark-gluon plasma. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]