English

Wave-Breaking Phenomena in Quark-Gluon Plasma

Nuclear Theory 2025-09-11 v1 High Energy Physics - Phenomenology Nuclear Experiment

Abstract

We investigate the onset of wave-breaking in the quark-gluon plasma (QGP) formed in heavy-ion collisions at both RHIC and the LHC. A nonlinear longitudinal color field is coupled to a three-dimensional viscous hydrodynamic background constrained by experimental conditions: Pb-Pb at sNN=5.02\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02 TeV (LHC) and Au-Au at sNN=200\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=200 GeV (RHIC). The instantaneous wave-breaking threshold is determined from the in-medium plasma frequency, while the field evolution follows a nonlinear Landau equation with Debye screening and expansion damping. At the LHC, the higher initial temperature and density drive the system above the threshold within τ\tau \lesssim 2.3 fm/cc, whereas at RHIC the cooler and more dilute medium delays wave-breaking to τ2.8\tau \simeq 2.8~fm/cc. Scans over initial temperature, density, thermalization time, QGP lifetime, and collision system (RHIC vs LHC) confirm the robustness of this instability against parameter variations. These results identify wave-breaking as a universal microscopic mechanism for the early loss of coherence and rapid onset of hydrodynamics in the QGP, providing a common explanation for the fast equilibration observed at both RHIC and the LHC.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2509.08130,
  title  = {Wave-Breaking Phenomena in Quark-Gluon Plasma},
  author = {Biswarup Paul},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2509.08130},
  year   = {2025}
}

Comments

4 pages, 2 figures

R2 v1 2026-07-01T05:29:10.479Z