Elliptic flow and incomplete equilibration at RHIC
Abstract
We argue that RHIC data, in particular those on the anisotropic flow coefficients v_2 and v_4, suggest that the matter produced in the early stages of nucleus-nucleus collisions is incompletely thermalized. We interpret the parameter (1/S)(dN/dy), where S is the transverse area of the collision zone and dN/dy the multiplicity density, as an indicator of the number of collisions per particle at the time when elliptic flow is established, and hence as a measure of the degree of equilibration. This number serves as a control parameter which can be varied experimentally by changing the system size, the centrality of the collision, or the beam energy. We provide predictions for Cu-Cu collisions at RHIC as well as for Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.nucl-th/0508009,
title = {Elliptic flow and incomplete equilibration at RHIC},
author = {R. S. Bhalerao and J. -P. Blaizot and N. Borghini and J. -Y. Ollitrault},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:nucl-th/0508009},
year = {2010}
}
Comments
5 pages, 2 figures, minor corrections