article · Physical Review X
Relativistic heavy-ion collisions create quark-gluon plasma, a deconfined state of matter under extreme conditions. Non-central collisions generate intense magnetic fields that deflect oppositely charged quarks and antiquarks in contrary directions, altering their momenta. This research analyses the collective motion, specifically charge-dependent directed flow, of pions, kaons, and protons from gold-gold and isobar collisions recorded by the STAR detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. The observed particle trajectories depend on the collision system, particle species, and collision centrality. While central collision patterns arise from quarks transported from initial nuclei, peripheral collision patterns provide direct evidence of electromagnetic field effects acting on the plasma. Consequently, these measurements establish key empirical constraints for theoretical calculations of the electrical conductivity of the quark-gluon plasma.
Understanding matter under extreme conditions offers fundamental insights into the forces and constituents that governed the early universe. By detecting how magnetic fields interact with the quark-gluon plasma, researchers can determine essential physical properties such as electrical conductivity. This enhances the understanding of quantum chromodynamics and provides benchmark data to refine theoretical models describing subatomic matter at extreme energy densities.
The supplied abstract does not indicate an application pathway, as the research is focused entirely on fundamental nuclear physics.
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The deconfined quark-gluon plasma (QGP) created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions enables the exploration of the fundamental properties of matter under extreme conditions. Noncentral collisions can produce strong magnetic fields on the order of <a:math xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><a:msup><a:mn>10</a:mn><a:mn>18</a:mn></a:msup><a:mtext> </a:mtext><a:mtext> </a:mtext><a:mi mathvariant="normal">G</a:mi></a:math>, which offers a probe into the electrical conductivity of the QGP. In particular, quarks and antiquarks carry opposite charges and receive contrary electromagnetic forces that alter their momenta. This phenomenon can be manifested in the collective motion of final-state particles, specifically in the rapidity-odd directed flow, denoted as <d:math xmlns:d="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><d:mrow><d:msub><d:mrow><d:mi>v</d:mi></d:mrow><d:mrow><d:mn>1</d:mn></d:mrow></d:msub><d:mo stretchy="false">(</d:mo><d:mi mathvariant="sans-serif">y</d:mi><d:mo stretchy="false">)</d:mo></d:mrow></d:math>. Here, we present the charge-dependent measurements of <i:math xmlns:i="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><i:mi>d</i:mi><i:msub><i:mi>v</i:mi><i:mn>1</i:mn></i:msub><i:mo>/</i:mo><i:mi>d</i:mi><i:mi mathvariant="sans-serif">y</i:mi></i:math> near midrapidities for <l:math xmlns:l="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><l:msup><l:mi>π</l:mi><l:mo>±</l:mo></l:msup></l:math>, <n:math xmlns:n="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><n:msup><n:mi>K</n:mi><n:mo>±</n:mo></n:msup></n:math>, and <p:math xmlns:p="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><p:mi>p</p:mi><p:mo stretchy="false">(</p:mo><p:mover accent="true"><p:mi>p</p:mi><p:mo stretchy="false">¯</p:mo></p:mover><p:mo stretchy="false">)</p:mo></p:math> in <v:math xmlns:v="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><v:mrow><v:mi>Au</v:mi><v:mo>+</v:mo><v:mi>Au</v:mi></v:mrow></v:math> and isobar (<x:math xmlns:x="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><x:mrow><x:mmultiscripts><x:mrow><x:mi>Ru</x:mi></x:mrow><x:mprescripts/><x:mrow><x:mn>44</x:mn></x:mrow><x:mrow><x:mn>96</x:mn></x:mrow></x:mmultiscripts></x:mrow><x:mo>+</x:mo><x:mrow><x:mmultiscripts><x:mrow><x:mi>Ru</x:mi></x:mrow><x:mprescripts/><x:mrow><x:mn>44</x:mn></x:mrow><x:mrow><x:mn>96</x:mn></x:mrow></x:mmultiscripts></x:mrow></x:math> and <z:math xmlns:z="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><z:mrow><z:mmultiscripts><z:mrow><z:mi>Zr</z:mi></z:mrow><z:mprescripts/><z:mrow><z:mn>40</z:mn></z:mrow><z:mrow><z:mn>96</z:mn></z:mrow></z:mmultiscripts></z:mrow><z:mo>+</z:mo><z:mrow><z:mmultiscripts><z:mrow><z:mi>Zr</z:mi></z:mrow><z:mprescripts/><z:mrow><z:mn>40</z:mn></z:mrow><z:mrow><z:mn>96</z:mn></z:mrow></z:mmultiscripts></z:mrow></z:math>) collisions at <bb:math xmlns:bb="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><bb:msqrt><bb:msub><bb:mi>s</bb:mi><bb:mrow><bb:mi>NN</bb:mi></bb:mrow></bb:msub></bb:msqrt><bb:mo>=</bb:mo><bb:mn>200</bb:mn><bb:mtext> </bb:mtext><bb:mtext> </bb:mtext><bb:mi>GeV</bb:mi></bb:math>, and in <db:math xmlns:db="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><db:mrow><db:mi>Au</db:mi><db:mo>+</db:mo><db:mi>Au</db:mi></db:mrow></db:math> collisions at 27 GeV, recorded by the STAR detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. The combined dependence of the <fb:math xmlns:fb="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><fb:msub><fb:mi>v</fb:mi><fb:mn>1</fb:mn></fb:msub></fb:math> signal on collision system, particle species, and collision centrality can be qualitatively and semiquantitatively understood as several effects on constituent quarks. While the results in central events can be explained by the <hb:math xmlns:hb="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><hb:mi>u</hb:mi></hb:math> and <jb:math xmlns:jb="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><jb:mi>d</jb:mi></jb:math> quarks transported from initial-state nuclei, those in peripheral events reveal the impacts of the electromagnetic field on the QGP. Our data put valuable constraints on the electrical conductivity of the QGP in theoretical calculations. Published by the American Physical Society 2024
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DOI: 10.1103/physrevx.14.011028
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