English

Flavor-Dependent QCD Critical Endpoint and Dual-Channel Fluctuations from Multi-Charge Holography

High Energy Physics - Phenomenology 2026-07-21 v1

Abstract

We construct a thermodynamically self-consistent holographic QCD framework incorporating multiple conserved charges. By introducing three independent bulk U(1)U(1) gauge fields, our Einstein-Maxwells-dilaton (EMsD) model naturally accommodates the coupled chemical potential landscape (μB,μQ,μS)(\mu_B, \mu_Q, \mu_S) inherent to realistic heavy-ion collisions. Crucially, thermodynamic consistency is enforced at the level of holographic renormalization, ensuring exact Maxwell cross-derivative relations without ad hoc patching. Calibrated exclusively at zero density, the model exhibits genuine predictive power for finite-density thermodynamics. We reveal that finite charge and strangeness densities induce pronounced nonmonotonic shifts in the critical endpoint (CEP) location. Furthermore, by mapping the freeze-out trajectories, we demonstrate that the allowed parameter bands robustly encompass empirical hadron resonance gas (HRG) fits. Within this physical regime, higher-order cumulant ratios for both net-baryon and net-charge channels exhibit coherent critical peaks at sNN57GeV\sqrt{s_{NN}} \approx 5\text{--}7\,\text{GeV}. This hierarchical dual-channel signature provides a decisive, background-free strategy for the ongoing experimental search for the QCD critical point.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2607.19149,
  title  = {Flavor-Dependent QCD Critical Endpoint and Dual-Channel Fluctuations from Multi-Charge Holography},
  author = {Zhibin Li and Danning Li and Mei Huang},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2607.19149},
  year   = {2026}
}