Effect of centrality bin width corrections on two-particle number and transverse momentum differential correlation functions

Two-particle number and transverse momentum differential correlation functions are powerful tools for unveiling the detailed dynamics and particle production mechanisms involved in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. Measurements of transverse momentum correlators P-2 and G(2), in particular, provide added information not readily accessible with better known number correlation functions R-2. However, it is found that the R-2 and G(2) correlators are somewhat sensitive to the details of the experimental procedure used to measure them. They exhibit, in particular, a dependence on the collision centrality bin width, which may have a rather detrimental impact on their physical interpretation. A technique to correct these correlators for collision centrality bin-width averaging is presented. The technique is based on the hypothesis that the shape of single- and pair-probability densities vary slower with collision centrality than the corresponding integrated yields. The technique is tested with Pb-Pb simulations based on the HIJING and ultrarelativistic quantum molecular dynamics models and shown to enable a precision better than 1% for particles in the kinematic range 0.2 <= p(T) <= 2.0 GeV/c.