Multiplicity scaling of light nuclei production in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

Using the nucleon coalescence model based on kinetic freeze-out nucleons from the 3D MUSIC+UrQMD and the 2D VISHNU hybrid model with a crossover equation of state, we study the multiplicity dependence of deuteron (d) and triton (t) production from central to peripheral Au+Au collisions at root s(NN) = 7.7, 14.5, 19.6, 27, 39, 62.4 and 200 GeV and Pb+Pb at root s(NN) = 2.76 TeV, respectively. It is found that the ratio NtNp/N-d(2) of the proton yield Np, deuteron yield Nd and triton yield Nt exhibits a scaling behavior in its multiplicity dependence, i.e., decreasing monotonically with increasing charged particle multiplicity. A similar multiplicity scaling of this ratio is also found in the nucleon coalescence calculation based on kinetic freeze-out nucleons from a multiphase transport (AMPT) model. The scaling behavior of NtNp/N-d(2) can be naturally explained by the interplay between the sizes of light nuclei and the nucleon emission source. We further argue that the multiplicity scaling of NtNp/N-d(2) can be used to validate the production mechanism of light nuclei, and the collision energy dependence of this yield ratio can further serve as a baseline in the search for the QCD critical point in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. (C) 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V.