Nuclear energy deposition and breakup final states in incoherent photoproduction

Characterize how energy deposited in a nucleus during Pomeron exchange followed by nucleon recoil is distributed and how that deposition produces specific nuclear breakup final states, thereby improving the modeling of incoherent photoproduction backgrounds at the Electron-Ion Collider.

Background

The study relies on BeAGLE and FLUKA to model nuclear breakup after incoherent vector-meson photoproduction. The predicted ability to distinguish coherent from incoherent events depends sensitively on how energy transferred to the struck nucleon is propagated through the residual nucleus and converted into emitted nucleons and de-excitation photons.

The authors identify substantial uncertainties in this modeling and note that little relevant experimental data exist on the connection between Pomeron exchange, nucleon recoil, and nuclear breakup. Resolving this issue would improve predictions of final-state tagging efficiencies and the reliability of coherent–incoherent separation at the EIC.

References

There are many uncertainties about how the energy deposited in the nucleus is distributed, and how this leads to specific final states. BeAGLE models the nuclear breakup using FLUKA, but there are significant uncertainties and little relevant data about how Pomeron exchange, followed by nucleon recoil, leads to nuclear breakup.

— Separating coherent and incoherent photoproduction at an Electron-Ion Collider: Comparing lead, gold and silver beams  (2609.30168 - Klein et al., 24 Sep 2026) in Section Conclusions