Speaker
Description
The STAR Beam Energy Scan II (BES II) program at RHIC is crucial for exploring the phase structure of strong interactions and understanding the properties of quark-gluon plasma (QGP). Directed flow ($v_{1}$) has been suggested as a sensitive probe of the equation of state of hot and dense matter. The $\phi$ meson, with its mass close to that of the proton but with strange quark content ($s\bar{s}$), provides a unique test for understanding the differences between net-baryon and meson directed flow due to its small hadronic cross-section.
In this poster, we present measurements of $\phi$ meson directed flow in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 3.0, 3.2, 3.5, 3.9, 4.5, 7.7, 9.2, 11.5, 14.5, 17.3, and 19.6 GeV from the RHIC-STAR experiment, utilizing both Fixed Target and Collider datasets of the STAR BES II program. Additionally, we report directed flow measurements for $p$, $K$, $\Lambda$, and $\bar{\Lambda}$ as a comparison to $\phi$ meson. We discuss the centrality and energy dependence of the $v_{1}$ slope, along with insights into the QCD phase structure.
| Category | Experiment |
|---|---|
| Collaboration (if applicable) | STAR |
