Passage of charmed particles through the mixed phase in high-energy heavy-ion collisions

Abstract

We employ a modified cascade hydrodynamics code to simulate the phase transition of an expanding quark-gluon plasma and the passage of a charmed particle through it. When inside the plasma droplets, the charmed quark experiences drag and diffusion forces. When outside the plasma, the quark travels as a $D$ meson and experiences collisions with pions. Additional energy transfer takes place when the quark enters or leaves a droplet. We find that the transverse momentum of $D$ mesons provides a rough thermometer of the phase transition.