Published: 1994
Total Pages: 6
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The highest net baryon density possible in the laboratory--up to ten times normal nuclear density--is expected in the central region of collisions of heavy nuclei (A ≈ 200) at energies near 10 GeV per nucleon. The transverse energy (E{sub T}) distribution, as well as yields of identified particles (?, K+ and protons), from 197Au + 197Au at 11.64A GeV/c are presented. Two key observations are a large degree of proton s̀̀topping, ̀̀indicating multiple scatterings of the incident nucleons, and a proportional relationship of the pion production to the number of participating nucleons. Strangeness enhancement, a proposed signature of the quark-gluon plasma, is studied via the K+/?+ ratio, which achieves the value of 21% without a strong centrality dependence. Comparisons to similar data taken with a 14.6A GeV/c beam of 28Si are made.