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arxiv: 2003.06412 · v2 · pith:6JXZ7JJ6new · submitted 2020-03-13 · ✦ hep-ph

DPS mechanism for associated cbar c bbar b production in AA UPCs

Edgar Huayra , Emmanuel G. de Oliveira , Roman Pasechnik This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-05-24 14:39 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification ✦ hep-ph
keywords double-parton scatteringultraperipheral collisionsheavy quark productionDPS pocket formulaAA collisionsLHCFCC
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The pith

An analogue of the DPS pocket formula is derived for associated c cbar b bbar production in AA ultraperipheral collisions by accounting for overlap between hard scatterings.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper adapts the standard double-parton scattering pocket formula to the case of simultaneous c cbar and b bbar production in ultraperipheral heavy-ion collisions. It incorporates the spatial overlap between the two hard single-parton scatterings and defines a photon-energy dependent effective cross section to handle that overlap. Numerical results are presented for the resulting cross sections at LHC and FCC energies together with the scaling of the total cross section with atomic number A. A sympathetic reader would care because these estimates supply a concrete way to assess the size of a rare four-quark final state that can be produced in existing and planned collider runs.

Core claim

The authors derive an analogue of the inclusive DPS pocket formula for the associated production of c cbar and b bbar quark pairs in AA UPCs. The derivation includes the overlap between the two hard SPS scatterings and yields a photon-energy dependent effective cross section. Using this expression they compute numerical predictions for the DPS cross sections at typical AA UPC energies at the LHC and FCC and characterize the A dependence of the total UPC DPS cross section.

What carries the argument

The photon-energy dependent effective cross section obtained by including the overlap between the two hard single-parton scatterings.

If this is right

  • Numerical values for the DPS cross sections of c cbar b bbar production become available at LHC and FCC energies.
  • The total UPC DPS cross section follows a definite dependence on atomic number A.
  • The adapted pocket formula supplies a quantitative estimate of the double-parton scattering contribution to four-heavy-quark final states.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

  • The same overlap treatment could be applied to other multi-parton processes involving photons in UPCs.
  • Comparison of the predicted rates with data may help isolate DPS contributions from single-parton scattering backgrounds.

Load-bearing premise

The modeling chosen for the overlap between the two hard SPS scatterings together with the functional form adopted for the photon-energy dependent effective cross section.

What would settle it

An experimental measurement of the c cbar b bbar production cross section in AA UPCs at the LHC that lies well outside the range of the numerical values computed from the derived formula.

Figures

Figures reproduced from arXiv: 2003.06412 by Edgar Huayra, Emmanuel G. de Oliveira, Roman Pasechnik.

Figure 1
Figure 1. Figure 1: FIG. 1: Two distinct contributions to the DPS cross section in [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p005_1.png] view at source ↗
Figure 2
Figure 2. Figure 2: FIG. 2: The DPS effective cross section of [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p008_2.png] view at source ↗
Figure 3
Figure 3. Figure 3: FIG. 3: The DPS [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p009_3.png] view at source ↗
Figure 4
Figure 4. Figure 4: FIG. 4: The atomic mass dependence of the total DPS cross section in the [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p009_4.png] view at source ↗
read the original abstract

We discuss the associated $c\bar{c}$ and $b\bar{b}$ quark pairs production in the double-parton scattering (DPS) process in ultraperipheral (UPCs) $AA$ collisions. We derive an analogue of the inclusive DPS pocket formula and the photon-energy dependent effective cross section considering an overlap between the hard SPS scatterings. We provide numerical predictions for the DPS cross sections for the $c\bar{c}b\bar{b}$ production process at the typical energies of $AA$ UPCs at the LHC and FCC colliders and also characterize the $A$ dependence of the total UPC DPS cross section.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Referee Report

1 major / 0 minor

Summary. The manuscript derives an analogue of the inclusive DPS pocket formula for associated c cbar b bbar production via double-parton scattering in ultraperipheral AA collisions. It introduces a photon-energy dependent effective cross section that incorporates an overlap factor between the two hard SPS scatterings, and supplies numerical predictions for the resulting DPS cross sections at LHC and FCC energies together with the A-dependence of the total UPC DPS cross section.

Significance. If the derivation of the energy-dependent overlap factor is placed on a transparent footing, the work supplies a concrete phenomenological tool for estimating DPS contributions to heavy-flavor production in UPCs. The explicit numerical results at collider energies and the characterization of nuclear-mass scaling constitute a practical strength for future experimental comparisons.

major comments (1)
  1. [Derivation of the photon-energy dependent effective cross section (around the pocket-formula analogue)] The central claim rests on the explicit construction of σ_eff(E_γ) from the overlap between the two SPS processes. The manuscript should demonstrate, either analytically or numerically, that the proposed form reduces to the standard inclusive DPS pocket formula when the photon-energy dependence is removed, and should compare the overlap ansatz to a direct double-photon-flux integral over nuclear impact-parameter geometry (Weizsäcker-Williams fluxes plus nuclear PDFs).

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

1 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for the positive evaluation of the work and for the specific suggestion regarding the derivation. We address the major comment below.

read point-by-point responses

  1. Referee: [Derivation of the photon-energy dependent effective cross section (around the pocket-formula analogue)] The central claim rests on the explicit construction of σ_eff(E_γ) from the overlap between the two SPS processes. The manuscript should demonstrate, either analytically or numerically, that the proposed form reduces to the standard inclusive DPS pocket formula when the photon-energy dependence is removed, and should compare the overlap ansatz to a direct double-photon-flux integral over nuclear impact-parameter geometry (Weizsäcker-Williams fluxes plus nuclear PDFs).

    Authors: We agree that an explicit demonstration of the reduction is useful for transparency. Our construction of the energy-dependent σ_eff begins from the standard DPS overlap integral and factors in the photon flux; setting the energy dependence to a constant (or performing the appropriate integral over photon energies) recovers the usual inclusive pocket formula. In the revised manuscript we will add this reduction explicitly, both analytically in the main text and numerically for a benchmark case. We will also include a comparison of the overlap ansatz to the direct double-photon-flux integral over nuclear impact parameter (using Weizsäcker-Williams fluxes and nuclear PDFs), showing the level of agreement within the kinematic range relevant for UPCs at LHC and FCC energies. revision: yes

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No circularity: derivation uses external PDFs and standard DPS overlap modeling without self-referential reduction

full rationale

The paper derives an analogue of the DPS pocket formula incorporating photon-energy dependent effective cross section and overlap between SPS scatterings. No quoted equations or steps reduce the claimed predictions or effective cross section to quantities fitted from the same data or defined circularly in terms of the output. The approach relies on external parton distributions, nuclear geometry, and Weizsäcker-Williams fluxes, which are independent inputs. No self-citation load-bearing, ansatz smuggling, or renaming of known results is exhibited in the provided text. This is the common case of a self-contained phenomenological derivation.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 0 axioms · 0 invented entities

Abstract-only review limits visibility into explicit free parameters or axioms; the derivation necessarily assumes standard collinear factorization, photon flux models from prior literature, and a specific overlap prescription whose details are not stated.

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Forward citations

Cited by 3 Pith papers

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score.

  1. Dissociative associated $J/\psi$ and dimuon production in Ap ultraperipheral collisions via double parton scattering

    hep-ph 2025-10 unverdicted novelty 5.0

    Derives a DPS pocket formula and effective cross section expression for dissociative J/ψ + dimuon production in Ap ultraperipheral collisions, with predictions at LHC and FCC energies.

  2. Momentum fraction and hard scale dependence of double parton scattering

    hep-ph 2025-06 unverdicted novelty 5.0

    Global fit of an x- and μ-dependent Gaussian model for transverse double parton distributions to LHC and Tevatron data extracts parameters for calculating effective cross sections in other observables.

  3. DPS mechanism for associated $c\bar{c} l^+l^-$ production in $AA$ UPCs as a probe for photon density inside the nucleus

    hep-ph 2021-06 unverdicted novelty 5.0

    Derived an analog pocket formula for DPS c cbar l+l- production in AA UPCs including elastic and inelastic photon contributions and presented differential cross section predictions at LHC energies.

Reference graph

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