Parton Distributions at Hadronization from Bulk Dense Matter Produced at RHIC

We present an analysis of $\Omega$, $\Xi$, $\Lambda$ and $\phi$ spectra from Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=200$ GeV in terms of distributions of effective constituent quarks at hadronization. Consistency in quark ratios derived from various hadron spectra provides clear evidence for hadron formation dynamics as suggested by quark coalescence or recombination models. We argue that the constituent quark distribution reflects properties of the effective partonic degrees of freedom at hadronization. Experimental data indicate that strange quarks have a transverse momentum distribution flatter than that of up/down quarks consistent with hydrodynamic expansion in partonic phase prior to hadronization. After the AMPT model is tuned to reproduce the strange and up/down quark distributions, the model can describe the measured spectra of hyperons and $\phi$ mesons very well where hadrons are formed through dynamical coalescence.