Centrality dependence of high-p T D meson suppression in Pb-Pb collisions at s N N = 2.76 TeV

The nuclear modification factor, R AA , of the prompt charmed mesons D 0 , D + and D ∗+ , and their antiparticles, was measured with the ALICE detector in Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy s N N = 2.76 TeV in two transverse momentum intervals, 5 < p T < 8 GeV /c and 8 < p T < 16 GeV /c , and in six collision centrality classes. The R AA shows a maximum suppression of a factor of 5-6 in the 10% most central collisions. The suppression and its centrality dependence are compatible within uncertainties with those of charged pions. A comparison with the R AA of non-prompt J /ψ from B meson decays, measured by the CMS Collaboration, hints at a larger suppression of D mesons in the most central collisions.