Jet Propagation and Mach Cones in (3+1)d Ideal Hydrodynamics

The observation of jet quenching and associated away–side Mach cone– like correlations at RHIC provide powerful “external” probes of the sQGP produced in A+A reactions [1], but it simultaneously raises the question where the jet energy was deposited. The nearly perfect bulk fluidity observed via elliptic flow suggests that Mach cone–like correlations may also be due to rapid local equilibration in the wake of penetrating jets. Multi-particle correlations lend further support to this possibility [2]. However, a combined study of energy deposition and fluid response is needed. We solve numerically 3–dimensional ideal hydrodynamical equations to compute the flow correlation patterns resulting from a variety of possible energymomentum deposition models. Mach–cone correlations are shown to depend critically on the energy and momentum deposition mechanisms. They only survive for a special limited class of energy–momentum loss models, which assume significantly less longitudinal momentum loss than energy loss per unit length. We conclude that the correct interpretation of away–side jet correlations will require improved understanding and independent experimental constraints on the jet energy–momentum loss to fluid couplings.