Fw: Decision on Running at 22 GeV This Year

From: Flemming Videbaek (videbaek@sgs1.hirg.bnl.goV)
Date: Wed Nov 14 2001 - 19:19:48 EST

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    Despite the arguments by particular Phenix and Brahms,  T.Kirk has decided
    (as is his right as Assosicate . LabDirector)
    to bypass the majority of opinions as well as recommendations from the PAC
    and allocate the last 24 hours of the run to 22 GeV. I still believe believe
    this is a bad decision, but the is no more to do at this point , but to
    acknowledge "it is good to be from MIT"
    
    We should later make a decision if if will just stop running at 8 am Sunday
    (Nov 25) or attempts to look at the beam at 22 GeV.
    
    
    ------------------------------------------------------
    Flemming Videbaek
    Physics Department
    Brookhaven National Laboratory
    
    tlf: 631-344-4106
    fax 631-344-1334
    e-mail: videbaek@bnl.gov
    
    Subject: Decision on Running at 22 GeV This Year
    
    
    > . November 14, 2001; 5:00 PM
    >
    > Colleagues:
    >
    > After hearing all the comments at today's Experimenter's
    > Meeting, I have reached a decision on the proposed 24-hour
    > run at 22 GeV proposed by PHOBOS.  I will supply my decision
    > here and then supply some comments that weighed in my
    > thinking.
    >
    > Decision:  RHIC will devote the last 24 hours of the last
    > day (Sunday, November 25, 6:00 AM to Monday, November 26,
    > 6:00 AM) of the Au x Au run to running at 22 GeV as proposed
    > by PHOBOS and supported from the theory side by Dmitri
    > Kharzeev.  By my best understanding, if there is success
    > in achieving luminosity at 22 GeV, STAR will expect to
    > take data but has some reservations about their ability
    > to sort out systematic error in the trigger; BRAHMS and
    > PHENIX do not expect to record useful amounts of data at
    > this energy.  Accordingly, the accelerator should establish
    > collisions first at PHOBOS, then at STAR and then (if
    > requested by the experiments) at PHENIX and BRAHMS.
    >
    > Comments:
    >  - There are two considerations here: 1) will the 22 GeV run
    >    achieve useful physics data? 2) will the loss of one day
    >    of runninng impose unacceptable losses on the 200 GeV
    >    Au x Au run?  It is my belief that the answer to the first
    >    question is "yes" for PHOBOS; "yes, but" for STAR; and
    >    "no" for PHENIX and BRAHMS.  On the second question, I
    >    observe the impact of missing one day of running for the
    >    most data-short experiment, PHENIX psi/J is about 5-10%
    >    according to my own projection (taken from Tony Frawley's
    >    slide).  We all hope the availability will somehow be
    >    better from now until the end and all are committed to
    >    this goal, but the expectation is not for a lot of
    >    improvement in the frequency of hardware failures.
    >  - This kind of question is especially hard to decide given
    >    the anticipated long delay before we can reasonably get
    >    back to Au x Au running at 200 GeV.  Whether or not we
    >    do more of this will again be considered by the experiments
    >    for FY 2003 running and by the PAC.  I expect a move
    >    towards d x Au running at full energy next year.
    >  - I considered extending the Au x Au running by one day but
    >    this is in serious conflict with our other goal of getting
    >    5 weeks of p x p running.  This latter goal has higher
    >    priority and I will pull out all stops to make this happen.
    >
    > I must now send this out.  I hope people will accept that
    > this decision was not an easy one.
    >
    > Sincerely, Tom Kirk
    >
    



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