Monday, July 16, 2018, 12:00 PM, room 112
Matt Luzum (University of Sao Paulo)
Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collisions: Quark-Gluon Plasma and the smallest
drop of liquid
Relativistic heavy-ion collisions probe the strong interactions (QCD)
in extreme conditions -- for example at high temperature, where there
is expected to exist a new phase of matter called the Quark-Gluon
Plasma. These experiments indicate that such a substance is indeed
created, which behaves as a strongly-coupled, almost-perfect fluid.
New experiments in smaller collision systems reveal similar
indications, challenging our understanding of the limits of
applicability of the theory of relativistic fluid dynamics, as well as
our understanding of these collision systems. I review some of the
key results that indicate this strong collective behavior, and outline
the current progress toward answering these questions.
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