arXiv subjects

H. van Hees

Publications and source records attributed to H. van Hees.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Anomalous soft photons: status and perspectives

This report summarizes the work of the EMMI Rapid Reaction Task Force on "Real and Virtual Photon Production at Ultra-Low Transverse Momentum and Low Mass at the LHC". We provide an overview of the soft-photon puzzle, i.e., of the long-standing discrepancy between experimental data and predictions based on Low's soft-photon theorem, also referred to as "anomalous" soft photon production, and we review the current theoretical understanding of soft radiation and soft theorems. We also focus on low-mass dileptons as a tool for determining the electrical conductivity of the medium produced in high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions. We discuss how both topics can be addressed with the planned ALICE 3 detector at the LHC.

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arXiv2022

Kinetics of the chiral phase transition in a quark-meson $σ$ model

Using the two-particle irreducible (2PI) $Φ$-functional formalism for self-consistent approximations of a linear-$σ$ model for quarks and mesons in and out of equilibrium, the build-up of fluctuations of net-baryon number during the time evolution of an expanding fireball is studied within a kinetic theory for the order parameter ($σ$ field) and quark distribution functions. Initializing the system with purely Gaussian fluctuations a fourth-order cumulant is temporarily built up due to the evolution of the $σ$-field. This is counterbalanced, however, by the dissipative evolution due to collisions between quarks, anti-quarks, mesons, and the mean field, depending on the speed of the fireball expansion.

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arXiv2020

QCD Challenges from pp to A-A Collisions

This paper is a write-up of the ideas that were presented, developed and discussed at the third International Workshop on QCD Challenges from pp to A-A, which took place in August 2019 in Lund, Sweden. The goal of the workshop was to focus on some of the open questions in the field and try to come up with concrete suggestions for how to make progress on both the experimental and theoretical sides. The paper gives a brief introduction to each topic and then summarizes the primary results.

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arXiv2018

Extraction of Heavy-Flavor Transport Coefficients in QCD Matter

We report on broadly based systematic investigations of the modeling components for open heavy-flavor diffusion and energy loss in strongly interacting matter in their application to heavy-flavor observables in high-energy heavy-ion collisions, conducted within an EMMI Rapid Reaction Task Force framework. Initial spectra including cold-nuclear-matter effects, a wide variety of space-time evolution models, heavy-flavor transport coefficients, and hadronization mechanisms are scrutinized in an effort to quantify pertinent uncertainties in the calculations of nuclear modification factors and elliptic flow of open heavy-flavor particles in nuclear collisions. We develop procedures for error assessments and criteria for common model components to improve quantitative estimates for the (low-momentum) heavy-flavor diffusion coefficient as a long-wavelength characteristic of QCD matter as a function of temperature, and for energy loss coefficients of high-momentum heavy-flavor particles.

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arXiv2018

Quarkonia production in a Langevin approach

We aim to describe the process of dissociation and recombination of quarkonia in the quark-gluon plasma. Therefore we developed a model which allows to observe the time evolution of a system with various numbers of charm-anticharm-quark pairs at different temperatures. The motion of the heavy quarks is realized within a Langevin approach. We use a simplified version of a formalism developed by Blaizot et al. in which an Abelian plasma is considered where the heavy quarks interact over a Coulomb like potential. We have demonstrated, that the system reaches the expected thermal distribution in the equilibrium limit.

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arXiv2017

Kinetics of the chiral phase transition in a linear $σ$ model

We study the dynamics of the chiral phase transition in a linear quark-meson $σ$ model using a novel approach based on semiclassical wave-particle duality. The quarks are treated as test particles in a Monte-Carlo simulation of elastic collisions and the coupling to the $σ$ meson, which is treated as a classical field. The exchange of energy and momentum between particles and fields is described in terms of appropriate Gaussian wave packets. It has been demonstrated that energy-momentum conservation and the principle of detailed balance are fulfilled, and that the dynamics leads to the correct equilibrium limit. First schematic studies of the dynamics of matter produced in heavy-ion collisions are presented.

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arXiv2016

Thermal Electromagnetic Radiation in Heavy-Ion Collisions

We review the potential of precise measurements of electromagnetic probes in relativistic heavy-ion collisions for the theoretical understanding of strongly interacting matter. The penetrating nature of photons and dileptons implies that they can carry undistorted information about the hot and dense regions of the fireballs formed in these reactions and thus provide a unique opportunity to measure the electromagnetic spectral function of QCD matter as a function of both invariant mass and momentum. In particular we report on recent progress on how the medium modifications of the (dominant) isovector part of the vector current correlator ($ρ$ channel) can shed light on the mechanism of chiral symmetry restoration in the hot and/or dense environment. In addition, thermal dilepton radiation enables novel access to (a) the fireball lifetime through the dilepton yield in the low invariant-mass window $0.3 \; \mathrm{GeV} \leq M \leq 0.7 \; \mathrm{GeV}$, and (b) the early temperatures of the fireball through the slope of the invariant-mass spectrum in the intermediate-mass region ($1.5 \; \mathrm{GeV} <M< 2.5 \; \mathrm{GeV}$). The investigation of the pertinent excitation function suggests that the beam energies provided by the NICA and FAIR projects are in a promising range for a potential discovery of the onset of a first order phase transition, as signaled by a non-monotonous behavior of both low-mass yields and temperature slopes.

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arXiv2015

Rôle of the pion electromagnetic form factor in the $Δ(1232) \to γ^\ast N$ timelike transition

The $Δ(1232) \to γ^\ast N$ magnetic dipole form factor ($G_M^\ast$) is described here within a new covariant model that combines the valence quark core together with the pion cloud contributions. The pion cloud term is parameterized by two terms: one connected to the pion electromagnetic form factor, the other to the photon interaction with intermediate baryon states. The model can be used in studies of pp and heavy ion collisions. In the timelike region this new model improves the results obtained with a constant form factor model fixed at its value at zero momentum transfer. At the same time, and in contrast to the Iachello model, this new model predicts a peak for the transition form factor at the expected position, i.e. at the $ρ$ mass pole. We calculate the decay of the $Δ\to γN$ transition, the Dalitz decay ($Δ\to e^+ e^- N$), and the $Δ$ mass distribution function. The impact of the model on dilepton spectra in pp collisions is also discussed.

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arXiv2015

Heavy-flavour and quarkonium production in the LHC era: from proton-proton to heavy-ion collisions

This report reviews the study of open heavy-flavour and quarkonium production in high-energy hadronic collisions, as tools to investigate fundamental aspects of Quantum Chromodynamics, from the proton and nucleus structure at high energy to deconfinement and the properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma. Emphasis is given to the lessons learnt from LHC Run 1 results, which are reviewed in a global picture with the results from SPS and RHIC at lower energies, as well as to the questions to be addressed in the future. The report covers heavy flavour and quarkonium production in proton-proton, proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions. This includes discussion of the effects of hot and cold strongly interacting matter, quarkonium photo-production in nucleus-nucleus collisions and perspectives on the study of heavy flavour and quarkonium with upgrades of existing experiments and new experiments. The report results from the activity of the SaporeGravis network of the I3 Hadron Physics programme of the European Union 7th Framework Programme.

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arXiv2015

Dileptons in a coarse-grained transport approach

We calculate dilepton spectra in heavy-ion collisions using a coarse-graining approach to the simulation of the created medium with the UrQMD transport model. This enables the use of dilepton-production rates evaluated in equilibrium quantum-field theory at finite temperatures and chemical potentials.

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arXiv2015

Electromagnetic probes in heavy-ion collisions: Messengers from the hot and dense phase

Due to their penetrating nature, electromagnetic probes, i.e., lepton-antilepton pairs (dileptons) and photons are unique tools to gain insight into the nature of the hot and dense medium of strongly-interacting particles created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions, including hints to the nature of the restoration of chiral symmetry of QCD. Of particular interest are the spectral properties of the electromagnetic current-correlation function of these particles within the dense and/or hot medium. The related theoretical investigations of the in-medium properties of the involved particles in both the partonic and hadronic part of the QCD phase diagram underline the importance of a proper understanding of the properties of various hadron resonances in the medium.

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arXiv2014

Properties of Thermal Photons at RHIC and LHC

We study the emission characteristics of thermal photons at RHIC and LHC as affected by both the space-time evolution of the bulk medium and the thermal emission rates. For the former we compare the results of two evolution models (expanding fireball and hydrodynamics). For the latter, we detail the influence of hadronic emission components and study a speculative scenario by upscaling the default QGP and hadronic rates around the pseudo-critical region.

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arXiv2014

Strangeness in Quark Matter 2013: Opening Talk

We discuss several new developments in the field of strange and heavy flavor physics in high energy heavy ion collisions. As shown by many recent theoretical works, heavy flavored particles give us a unique opportunity to study the properties of systems created in these collisions. Two in particular important aspects, the production of (multi) strange hypernuclei and the properties of heavy flavor mesons, are at the core of several future facilities and will be discussed in detail.

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arXiv2013

Dynamics of the chiral phase transition

The intention of this study is the search for signatures of the chiral phase transition in heavy-ion collisions. To investigate the impact of fluctuations, e.g., of the baryon number, at the transition or at a critical point, the linear sigma model is treated in a dynamical (3+1)-dimensional numerical simulation. Chiral fields are approximated as classical mean fields, and quarks are described as quasi particles in a Vlasov equation. Additional dynamics is implemented by quark-quark and quark-sigma-field interactions. For a consistent description of field-particle interactions, a new Monte-Carlo-Langevin-like formalism has been developed and is discussed.

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arXiv2012

Transport-theoretical Description of Nuclear Reactions

In this review we first outline the basics of transport theory and its recent generalization to off-shell transport. We then present in some detail the main ingredients of any transport method using in particular the Giessen Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck (GiBUU) implementation of this theory as an example. We discuss the potentials used, the ground state initialization and the collision term, including the in-medium modifications of the latter. The central part of this review covers applications of GiBUU to a wide class of reactions, starting from pion-induced reactions over proton and antiproton reactions on nuclei to heavy-ion collisions (up to about 30 AGeV). A major part concerns also the description of photon-, electron- and neutrino-induced reactions (in the energy range from a few 100 MeV to a few 100 GeV). For this wide class of reactions GiBUU gives an excellent description with the same physics input and the same code being used. We argue that GiBUU is an indispensable tool for any investigation of nuclear reactions in which final-state interactions play a role. Studies of pion-nucleus interactions, nuclear fragmentation, heavy ion reactions, hyper nucleus formation, hadronization, color transparency, electron-nucleus collisions and neutrino-nucleus interactions are all possible applications of GiBUU and are discussed in this article.

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arXiv2011

Heavy Quark Dynamics in the QGP

We assess transport properties of heavy quarks in the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) that show a strong non-perturbative behavior. A T-matrix approach based on a potential taken from lattice QCD hints at the presence of heavy-quark (HQ) resonant scattering with an increasing strength as the temperature, $T$, reaches the critical temperature, $T_c \simeq 170 \; \MeV$ for deconfinement from above. The implementation of HQ resonance scattering along with a hadronization via quark coalescence under the conditions of the plasma created in heavy-ion collisions has been shown to correctly describe both the nuclear modification factor, $R_{AA}$, and the elliptic flow, $v_2$, of single electrons at RHIC and have correctly predicted the $R_{AA}$ of D mesons at LHC energy.

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arXiv2011

Thermal Photons and Collective Flow at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider

We update our calculations of thermal-photon production in nuclear collisions at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider (RHIC). Specifically, we address the recent experimental observation of an elliptic flow of direct photons comparable in magnitude to that of pions, which is at variance with expectations based on quark-gluon plasma (QGP) dominated photon radiation. Our thermal emission rate is based on previous work, i.e., resummed leading-order QGP emission and in-medium hadronic rates in the confined phase. These rates are nearly degenerate at temperatures close to the expected QCD-phase change. The rates are convoluted over an improved elliptic-fireball expansion with transverse- and elliptic-flow fields quantitatively constrained by empirical light- and strange-hadron spectra. The resulting direct-photon spectra in central Au-Au collisions are characterized by hadron-dominated emission up to transverse momenta of ~2-3 GeV. The associated large elliptic flow in the hadronic phase mitigates the discrepancy with the measured photon-v2 compared to scenarios with QGP-dominated emission.

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arXiv2009

Nonperturbative Heavy-Quark Interactions in the QGP

We adopt a $T$-matrix approach to study quarkonium properties and heavy-quark transport in a Quark-Gluon Plasma. The $T$-matrix approach is well suited to implement potential scattering and thus provides a common framework for low-momentum transfer interactions in heavy-heavy and heavy-light quark systems. We assume that the underlying potentials can be estimated from the heavy-quark free energy computed in lattice QCD. We discuss constraints from vacuum spectroscopy, uncertainties arising from different choices of the potential, and the role of elastic and inelastic widths which are naturally accounted for in the $T$-matrix formalism.

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