Photon-Photon and Photon-Hadron Interactions at Relativistic Heavy Ion Colliders

Abstract In central collisions at relativistic heavy ion colliders like the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider RHIC/Brookhaven and the Large Hadron Collider LHC (in its heavy ion mode) at CERN/Geneva, one aims at detecting a new form of hadronic matter — the Quark Gluon Plasma. We discuss here a complementary aspect of these collisions, the very peripheral ones. Due to coherence, there are strong electromagnetic fields of short duration in such collisions. They give rise to photon-photon and photon-nucleus collisions with high flux up to an invariant mass region hitherto unexplored experimentally. After a general survey photon-photon luminosities in relativistic heavy ion collisions are discussed. Then photon-photon physics at various γγ-invariant mass scales is discussed. The region of several GeV, relevant for RHIC is dominated by QCD phenomena (meson and vector meson pair production). Invariant masses of up to about 100 GeV can be reached at LHC, and the potential for new physics is discussed. Lepton-pair production, especially electron-positron pair production is copious. Due to the strong fields there will be new phenomena, especially multiple e + e − pair production.