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At least 91 records · Page 5

Bulk viscosity of strongly interacting matter in the relaxation time approximation

Here, we show how thermal mean field effects can be incorporated consistently in the hydrodynamical modeling of heavy-ion collisions. The nonequilibrium correction to the distribution function resulting from a temperature-dependent mass is obtained in a procedure which automatically satisfies the Landau matching condition and is thermodynamically consistent. The physics of the bulk viscosity is studied here for Boltzmann and Bose-Einstein gases within the Chapman-Enskog and 14-moment approaches in the relaxation time approximation. Constant and temperature-dependent masses are considered in turn. It is shown that, in the small mass limit, both methods lead to the same value of the ratio of the bulk viscosity to its relaxation time. The inclusion of a temperature-dependent mass leads to the emergence of the β λ function in that ratio, and it is of the expected parametric form for the Boltzmann gas, while for the Bose-Einstein case it is affected by the infrared cutoff. This suggests that the relaxation time approximation may be too crude to obtain a reliable form of ς/τ R for gases obeying Bose-Einstein statistics.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Dark matter relic density in strongly interacting dark sectors with light vector mesons

Stable dark matter particles may arise as pseudo-Goldstone bosons from the confinement of dark quarks interacting via a non-Abelian gauge force. Their relic abundance is determined not by annihilations into visible particles but by dark pion number-changing processes within the dark sector, such as 3 π D → 2 π D . However, if the dark vector mesons ρ D are light enough for 3 π D → π D ρ D annihilations to be kinematically allowed, this process dominates and significantly delays freeze-out. As a result, the preferred dark matter mass scale increases and bounds from the Bullet Cluster can be evaded. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Coulomb bound states of strongly interacting photons

We show that two photons coupled to Rydberg states via electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) can interact via an effective Coulomb potential. The interaction then gives rise to a continuum of two-body bound states. Within the continuum, metastable bound states are distinguished in analogy with quasi-bound states tunneling through a potential barrier. We find multiple branches of metastable bound states whose energy spectrum is governed by the Coulomb problem, thus obtaining a photonic analogue of the hydrogen atom. These states propagate with a negative group velocity in the medium, which allows for a simple preparation and detection scheme, before they slowly decay to pairs of bound Rydberg atoms. As a result, we verify the metastability and backward propagation of these Coulomb bound states with exact numerical simulations.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Symmetric Nuclear Matter from the Strong Interaction

We study the equation of state of symmetric nuclear matter at zero temperature over a wide range of densities using two complementary theoretical approaches. At low densities, up to twice nuclear saturation density, we compute the energy per particle based on modern nucleon-nucleon and three-nucleon interactions derived within chiral effective field theory. For higher densities, we derive for the first time constraints in a Fierz-complete setting directly based on quantum chromodynamics using functional renormalization group techniques. Here, we find remarkable consistency of the results obtained from both approaches as they come together in density and the natural emergence of a maximum in the speed of sound 𝑐𝑆 at supranuclear densities. The presence of this maximum appears tightly connected to the formation of a diquark gap. Notably, this maximum is observed to exceed the asymptotic value 𝑐$^{2}_{𝑆}$ =1/3 while its exact position in terms of the density cannot yet be determined conclusively.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Strongly interacting dipolar-polaritons

Exciton-polaritons are mutually interacting quantum hybridizations of confined photons and electronic excitations. Here, we demonstrate a system of optically guided, electrically polarized exciton-polaritons (“dipolaritons”) that displays up to 200-fold enhancement of the polariton-polariton interaction strength compared to unpolarized polaritons. The magnitude of the dipolar interaction enhancement can be turned on and off and can be easily tuned over a very wide range by varying the applied polarizing electric field. The large interaction strengths and the very long propagation distances of these fully guided dipolaritons open up new opportunities for realizing complex quantum circuitry and quantum simulators, as well as topological states based on exciton-polaritons, for which the interactions between polaritons need to be large and spatially or temporally controlled. The results also raise fundamental questions on the origin of these large enhancements.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Phase transitions in strongly interacting matter

I discuss the phase structure of hadronic matter in terms of the basic dynamical and geometrical features of hadrons. Increasing the density of constituents of finite spatial extension, by increasing the temperature T or the baryochemical potential µ, eventually “fills the box” and eliminates the physical vacuum. The corresponding transition as function of T and µ can be determined through percolation theory. At low baryon density, this means a fusion of overlapping mesonic bags to one large bag, while at high baryon density, hard core repulsion restricts the spatial mobility of baryons. As a consequence, there are two distinct limiting regimes for hadronic matter.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Strong interaction physics at the luminosity frontier with 22 GeV electrons at Jefferson Lab

Here, the purpose of this document is to outline the developing scientific case for pursuing an energy upgrade to 22 GeV of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (TJNAF, or JLab). This document was developed with input from a series of workshops held in the period between March 2022 and April 2023 that were organized by the JLab user community and staff with guidance from JLab management (see Sec. 10). The scientific case for the 22 GeV energy upgrade leverages existing or already planned Hall equipment and world-wide uniqueness of CEBAF high-luminosity operations.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Strong Interaction Studies with Medium Energy Probes

The PI, Kam Seth, and his group have engaged in nuclear and medium-energy particle physics for several decades. This report is the final one in a long successful scientific effort. During the last funding cycle, the Seth group contributed in important ways to the commissioning of the GlueX experiment at JLAB. Prior to joining GlueX, they were long-standing members of the CLEO Collaboration. Their scientific production includes measurements of hadronic cross sections pertinent to the (g-2) muon anomaly, the measurement of certain rare branching fractions of the Omega-minus baryon, and the observation of the first exclusive photoproduction of J/psi in Gluex. Two postdocs, Sean Dobbs and Ting Xiao, secured good faculty positions and are successfully pursuing their own research agendas.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗