arXiv subjects

Maowu Nie

Publications and source records attributed to Maowu Nie.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Low-energy Muon-Nucleon scattering experiment: LUNE (White Paper)

The HIAF will provide high-intensity, high-quality muon beams with momenta from 0.5 to 7.5 GeV/c. This energy range is uniquely suited for precision muon scattering, bridging the gap between low-energy electron facilities and future high-energy lepton-ion colliders. In particular, HIAF will enable precision measurements with both positive and negative muon beams over a broad kinematic range, complementing existing electron-scattering facilities such as JLab, EicC and EIC. Based on HIAF muon source, the LUNE Collaboration has been established to address several fundamental questions in nuclear and particle physics, including the proton charge radius puzzle, nucleon electromagnetic structure, and the dynamics of quantum electrodynamics and hadronic interactions. The program proceeds in two phases, from elastic scattering to nucleon structure and beyond-Standard-Model searches. The experiment is expected to determine the proton charge radius with a precision of approximately 1.0\% using elastic muon-proton scattering. It will also perform systematic measurements of the proton electromagnetic form factors with both $μ^+$ and $μ^-$ beams, enabling precise studies of two-photon exchange effects and stringent tests of quantum electrodynamics. Beyond elastic scattering, LUNE will investigate TMD, gravitational form factors, and nuclear charge radii, providing new insights into the 3D structure of nucleons and nuclei. The experiment will further address important topics including Coulomb-distortion corrections, nuclear medium effects, and possible signatures of physics beyond the Standard Model. This white paper presents the scientific motivation, detector concept, expected performance, and long-term strategy of LUNE.

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arXiv2026

Selected highlights from STAR experiment

In this paper, we review recent highlights in heavy-ion collisions and proton-proton collisions at top energies from STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) with key contributions from Chinese groups, including the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) bulk properties, electromagnetic probes, heavy flavor and jets, antimatter hyper-nucleus, nuclear structure, global polarization, and nucleon spin structure. These data serve as important ingredients in the physics of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD).

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arXiv2026

Collision energy and system size dependence of longitudinal flow decorrelation in heavy-ion collisions at RHIC energies

In heavy-ion collisions, the initial collision geometry and its fluctuations drive the collective expansion of final-state hadrons in the transverse plane. However, longitudinal fluctuations induce event-plane twist and flow magnitude asymmetries, collectively known as longitudinal flow decorrelation. Using a multi-phase transport (AMPT) model, we systematically investigate the dependence of collision energy and system size of this phenomenon with Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}$ = 19.6, 27, 54.4, 200 GeV and isobar collisions (Zr+Zr and Ru+Ru) at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}$ = 200 GeV. The results reveal two distinct decorrelation components: $r_n(η)$, which includes flow magnitude asymmetry and event-plane twist, and $R_n(η)$ which arises purely from event-plane twist. Both $r_n(η)$ and $R_n(η)$ decrease linearly with $η$ and exhibit a significant dependence on collision energy and the size of the system. Through the slope parameters $F_n$ in the linear parametrization $r_n(η) = 1-2F_nη$, we can quantify the strength of decorrelation. We further observe that both $F_2$ and $F_3$ demonstrate a pronounced power-law scaling behavior with collision energy, following the relation $F_n \propto log \sqrt{s_{NN}}$. These results provide valuable insights into the three-dimensional modeling of the initial stage and the evolution of relativistic heavy-ion collisions.

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arXiv2024

Exploring system size dependence of jet modification in heavy-ion collisions

In relativistic heavy-ion collisions, jet quenching in quark-gluon plasma (QGP) has been extensively studied, revealing important insights into the properties of the color deconfined nuclear matter. Over the past decade, there has been a surge of interest in the exploration of QGP droplets in small collision systems like $p$+$p$ or $p$+A collisions driven by the observation of collective flow phenomena. However, the absence of jet quenching, a key QGP signature, in these systems poses a puzzle. Understanding how jet quenching evolves with system size is crucial for uncovering the underlying physics. In this study, we employ the linear Boltzmann transport (LBT) model to investigate jet modification in $^{96}$Ru+$^{96}$Ru, $^{96}$Zr+$^{96}$Zr, and $^{197}$Au+$^{197}$Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=200$ GeV. Our findings highlight the system size sensitivity exhibited by jet nuclear modification factor ($R_\mathrm{AA}$) and jet shape ($ρ$), contrasting to the relatively weak responses of jet mass ($M$), girth ($g$) and momentum dispersion ($p_\mathrm{T}{D}$) to system size variations. These results offer invaluable insights into the system size dependence of the QGP properties and await experimental validation at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider.

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arXiv2024

Deciphering yield modification of hadron-triggered semi-inclusive recoil jets in heavy-ion collisions

In relativistic heavy-ion collisions, a hot and dense state of matter, called the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP), is produced. Semi-inclusive jets recoiling from trigger hadrons of high transverse momenta ($p_{\mathrm{T}}$) can serve as an effective probe of the QGP properties, as they are expected to experience jet quenching when traversing the QGP. Recent experimental results on the ratio of recoil jet yields normalized by the trigger counts in heavy-ion collisions to that in $p$+$p$ collisions ($I_{\mathrm{AA}}$) pose an unexpected challenge in its interpretation. It is observed that $I_{\mathrm{AA}}$ rises with the jet $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ and possibly exceeds unity at high $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, while traditionally it is expected that jet quenching would lead to $I_{\mathrm{AA}} < 1$. To address this challenge, we utilize the Linear Boltzmann Transport (LBT) model to simulate jet transport in the QGP, and study the effect of jet quenching for high-$p_{\mathrm{T}}$ triggers and recoil jets separately on $I_{\mathrm{AA}}$. We find that the quenching of the colored triggers alone is responsible for the rising trend and larger-than-unity value observed experimentally.

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arXiv2023

Impact of nuclear structure on longitudinal flow decorrelations in high-energy isobar collisions

Fluctuations of harmonic flow along pseudorapidity, known as flow decorrelations, are an important probe of the initial state geometry of the quark-gluon plasma. The flow decorrelations are shown to be sensitive to the collective structure of the colliding nuclei, as revealed clearly by comparing collisions of isobars, $^{96}$Ru+$^{96}$Ru and $^{96}$Zr+$^{96}$Zr, which have different nuclear structures. The flow decorrelations in central collisions are mostly sensitive to nuclear deformations, while those in the mid-central collisions are primarily sensitive to differences in skin thickness between $^{96}$Ru and $^{96}$Zr. Longitudinal flow decorrelations in heavy-ion collisions are a new tool to probe the structure of colliding nuclei.

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arXiv2023

Impact of nuclear structure on longitudinal flow decorrelations in high-energy isobar collisions

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arXiv2020

Energy dependence of longitudinal flow decorrelation from STAR

Measurements of longitudinal flow decorrelations for charged particles are presented in the pseudorapidity range $|η| < 1$ using a reference detector at 2.1 $< |η_{\mathrm{ref}}| <$ 5.1 in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 27 GeV by STAR. The flow decorrelation for $v_2$ shows a strong centrality dependence, while a weak centrality dependence for $v_3$. Results are compared with the results in Au+Au collisions at 200 GeV as a function of $η$ scaled by beam-rapidity, i.e. $η/y_{beam}$. No energy dependence is observed for $v_2$ decorrelation, but clear energy dependence for $v_3$ decorrelation. These results provide new insights into the longitudinal structure of the initial-state geometry in heavy-ion collisions.

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arXiv2020

Longitudinal eccentricity decorrelations in heavy ion collisions

In heavy-ion collisions, the harmonic flow $V_n$ of final-state particles are driven by the eccentricity vector ${\mathcal{E}}_n$ that describe the shape of the initial fireball projected in the transverse plane. It is realized recently that the structure and shape of the fireball, and consequently the ${\mathcal{E}}_n$, fluctuate in pseudorapidity $η$ in a single event, ${\mathcal{E}}_n(η)$. This leads to eccentricity decorrelation between different $η$, driving the longitudinal flow decorrelations observed in the experiments. Using a Glauber model with a paramerterized longitudinal structure, we have estimated the eccentricity decorrelations and related them to the measured flow decorrelation coefficients for elliptic flow $n=2$ and triangular flow $n=3$. We investigated the dependence of eccentricity decorrelations on the choice of collision system in terms of the size, asymmetry and deformation of the nuclei. We found that these nuclear geometry effects lead to significant and characteristic patterns on the eccentricity decorrelations, which describe the measured ratios of the flow decorrelations between Xe+Xe and Pb+Pb collisions. These patterns can be searched for using existing experimental data at RHIC and the LHC, and if confirmed, they will provide a mean to improve our understanding of the initial state of the heavy-ion collisions.

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arXiv2019

Influence of initial-state momentum anisotropy on the final-state collectivity in small collision systems

A multi-phase transport model is used to understand the origin of long-range collective azimuthal correlations in small-system collisions. To disentangle between collectivity associated with initial-state intrinsic momentum anisotropy and the collectivity arising as a final-state response to the collision geometry, we studied the development of collectivity in 5.02 TeV $p$+Pb collisions with both initial-state and final-state effects included. We find that the initial momentum anisotropy may not be fully isotropized through parton interactions, and the final-state partonic collectivity in general are correlated with both the initial momentum anisotropy and the shape of the collision geometry. The initial momentum anisotropy also influences the event by event fluctuation of collective flow. Therefore the mere evidence of geometry response of the collective flow can not rule out the presence of large contributions from the initial state.

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arXiv2017

Observables for longitudinal flow correlations in heavy-ion collisions

We propose several new observables/correlators, based on correlations between two or more subevents separated in pseudorapidity $η$, to study the longitudinal flow fluctuations. We show that these observables are sensitive to the event-by-event fluctuations, as a function of $η$, of the initial condition as well as the non-linear mode-mixing effects. Experimental measurement of these observables shall provide important new constraints on the boost-variant event-by-event initial conditions required by all 3+1-dimensional viscous hydrodynamics models.

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