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PreprintCC BY 4.0arXiv

System-size dependence of strangeness production from p+p to Pb+Pb: quantitative tests of the K+/π+ horn

  • Neeraj
  • Amal Sarkar
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Abstract

The pronounced maximum ("horn") in the K+/π+ excitation function observed in central Pb+Pb collisions is well established feature of collision-energy dependence, but its dependence on system size remains poorly understood. We confront hadronic (SMASH) and partonic (PHSD) transport, Glauber core-corona, canonical-ensemble suppression, and the two-phase statistical model of the early stage (SMES) with K+/π+ data spanning the complete NA61/SHINE system-size ladder (p+p, Be+Be, Ar+Sc, Xe+La) together with NA49 Pb+Pb and STAR Au+Au, quantifying every comparison by χ2. No single framework describes the full range: core-corona is preferred for intermediate systems, SMES with canonical strangeness conservation for heavy systems, and none reproduces the small-system data. Neither transport model generates the horn, with or without partonic degrees of freedom. The data exhibit a step-like enhancement of K+/π+ between Be+Be and Ar+Sc, quantified within the core-corona framework by a step from fcore ≈ 0.22 (Be+Be) to fcore ≈ 0.58 (Ar+Sc). The strangeness saturation factor gs rises in two distinct steps, separating geometric core formation from thermodynamic equilibration. The (K+/π+)/(K-/π-) double ratio, which at fixed sqrts cancels the system-independent μB contribution, shows a step between light and heavy systems at a global significance of 3.7σ, providing evidence for genuine strangeness enhancement beyond the pair-production baseline. Preliminary Xe+La data favor core-corona (chindf = 5.8) over SMASH (chindf = 23.3); finalized spectra will sharpen the CC/SMES discrimination at the 27% level.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@misc{neeraj2026systemsize,
  title = {{System-size dependence of strangeness production from p+p to Pb+Pb: quantitative tests of the $K^+/π^+$ horn}},
  author = {Neeraj and Amal Sarkar},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = aug,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2608.28189},
  eprint = {2608.28189},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.28189},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - UNPB
TI  - System-size dependence of strangeness production from p+p to Pb+Pb: quantitative tests of the K^+/π^+ horn
AU  - Neeraj
AU  - Amal Sarkar
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/28
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2608.28189
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.28189
AB  - The pronounced maximum ("horn") in the K^+/π^+ excitation function observed in central Pb+Pb collisions is well established feature of collision-energy dependence, but its dependence on system size remains poorly understood. We confront hadronic (SMASH) and partonic (PHSD) transport, Glauber core-corona, canonical-ensemble suppression, and the two-phase statistical model of the early stage (SMES) with K^+/π^+ data spanning the complete NA61/SHINE system-size ladder (p+p, Be+Be, Ar+Sc, Xe+La) together with NA49 Pb+Pb and STAR Au+Au, quantifying every comparison by χ^2. No single framework describes the full range: core-corona is preferred for intermediate systems, SMES with canonical strangeness conservation for heavy systems, and none reproduces the small-system data. Neither transport model generates the horn, with or without partonic degrees of freedom. The data exhibit a step-like enhancement of K^+/π^+ between Be+Be and Ar+Sc, quantified within the core-corona framework by a step from fcore ≈ 0.22 (Be+Be) to fcore ≈ 0.58 (Ar+Sc). The strangeness saturation factor gs rises in two distinct steps, separating geometric core formation from thermodynamic equilibration. The (K^+/π^+)/(K^-/π^-) double ratio, which at fixed sqrts cancels the system-independent μ_B contribution, shows a step between light and heavy systems at a global significance of 3.7σ, providing evidence for genuine strangeness enhancement beyond the pair-production baseline. Preliminary Xe+La data favor core-corona (chindf = 5.8) over SMASH (chindf = 23.3); finalized spectra will sharpen the CC/SMES discrimination at the 27% level.
ER  -