5.3: Quark-Gluon Plasma
Search for quark-gluon plasma. Other Information:
The quarks and gluons that compose each proton and neutron are normally confined within these nucleons. However, if nuclear
matter is heated sufficiently, quarks will become deconfined and individual nucleons will melt into a hot, dense plasma of
quarks and gluons. Such plasma is believed to have filled the universe about a millionth of a second after the “Big Bang.”
The discovery and characterization of this new state of matter formed at extreme conditions never before available in the
laboratory will yield new insight into the early phases of the universe. Our strategy includes the following emphases: • Use
colliding beams of atomic nuclei at RHIC to explore new states of matter at high-energy density, recreating brief, small samples
of quark-gluon plasma and characterizing its properties. • Increase the beam luminosities at RHIC and upgrade the detectors
to allow more detailed studies of this primal state of matter. Investigate the emission of particles at high transverse momentum
to better understand the behavior of jet transmission through the plasma, using the Large Hadron Collider.
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