Speaker
Description
Heavy ion collisions at extremely high energy, such as the top
energy at RHIC and the typical energy at LHC, exhibit the property of
transparency where there is a clear separation between the almost
net-baryon-free central rapidity region and the net-baryon-rich
fragmentation region. We calculate the net-baryon rapidity loss and
the nuclear excitation energy using the energy-momentum tensor obtained
from the McLerran-Venugopalan model. Nuclear compression during the
collision is further estimated using a simple space-time picture. The
results show that extremely high baryon densities, more than ten times
larger than the normal nuclear density, can be achieved in the
fragmentation regions. Systematic studies including asymmetric collisions,
collisions at finite impact parameters and collisions with different
nuclei and energy are performed. Our results should provide the initial
conditions for the baryon distribution in the ensuing evolution and open a
different corner on the QCD phase diagram for experimental probes.
| Preferred Track | Initial State Physics and Approach to Equilibrium |
|---|---|
| Collaboration | Not applicable |
