Search for the Elusive Jet-Induced Diffusion Wake in Z/γ-Jets with 2D Jet Tomography in High-Energy Heavy-Ion Collisions

Diffusion wake is an unambiguous part of the jet-induced medium response in high-energy heavy-ion collisions that leads to a depletion of soft hadrons in the opposite direction of the jet propagation. New experimental data on Z-hadron correlation in Pb + Pb collisions at the Large Hadron Collider show, however, an enhancement of soft hadrons in the direction of both the Z and the jet. Using a coupled linear Boltzmann transport and hydro model, we demonstrate that medium modification of partons from the initial multiple parton interaction (MPI) gives rise to a soft hadron enhancement that is uniform in azimuthal angle while jet-induced medium response and soft gluon radiation dominate the enhancement in the jet direction. After subtraction of the contributions from MPI with a mixed-event procedure, the diffusion wake becomes visible in the near-side Z-hadron correlation. We further employ the longitudinal and transverse gradient jet tomography for the first time to localize the initial jet production positions in Z/gamma-jet events in which the effect of the diffusion wake is apparent in Z/gamma-hadron correlation even without the subtraction of the MPI contribution.