Perturbative Gluon Shadowing in Heavy Nuclei

Abstract

We study how much gluon shadowing can be perturbatively generated through the modified QCD evolution in heavy nuclei. The evolution of small-$x$ gluons is investigated within the semiclassical approximation. The method of characteristics is used to evaluate the shadowed distributions in low-$Q$ and small-$x$ region. In solving the modified evolution equation, we model in simultaneously fusions from independent constituents and from the same constituent, both in a proton and in a large loosely bound nucleus of $A\sim 200$. In addition to the actual distributions at small $x$, we study the ratios of the distributions at an initial scale $Q_0 = 2$ GeV, and show that a strong nuclear shadowing can follow from the modified QCD evolution.

9 pages in LATEX with 2 postscript figures in a separate uuencoded file, LBL-34156