Related papers: Quark Matter '99 --- Theoretical Summary: What Nex…
A fundamental question of physics is what ultimately happens to matter as it is heated or compressed. In the realm of very high temperature and density the fundamental degrees of freedom of the strong interaction, quarks and gluons, come…
We study the behavior of the scalar glueball inside a Quark Gluon Plasma. We follow the fireball from the plasma phase to the hadronic phase and observe that an interesting phenomenon might occur which could have experimental consequences…
I discuss the phase structure of strongly interacting matter at high temperatures and densities, as predicted by statistical QCD, and consider in particular the nature of the transition of hot hadronic matter to a plasma of deconfined…
Central nuclear collisions at energies far above 1 GeV/nucleon may provide for conditions, where the transition from highly excited hadronic matter into quark matter or quark-gluon plasma can be probed. Here I review our current…
This is an introduction to the study of strongly interacting matter. We survey its different possible states and discuss the transition from hadronic matter to a plasma of deconfined quarks and gluons. Following this, we summarize the…
In this talk I discuss three main topics concerning the theoretical description and observable signatures of possible phase transitions in nuclear collisions. The first one is related to the multifragmentation of thermalized sources and its…
We identify the major physics milestones in the development of strange hadrons as an observable for both the formation of quark-gluon plasma, and of the ensuing explosive disintegration of deconfined matter fireball formed in relativistic…
We discuss recent data on particle production with emphasis on the degree of thermal and chemical equilibration achieved. The data are interpreted in terms of a resonance gas model. The phase boundary constructed between the resonance gas…
In ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions the produced high temperature, high energy density state will cross different phases of the strongly interacting matter. The original idea of quark-gluon plasma formation has been evolved and the…
We discuss how the dynamics of an exploding hot fireball of quark--gluon matter impacts the actual phase transition conditions between the deconfined and confined state of matter. We survey the chemical conditions prevailing at…
I review the status of the search for quark-gluon plasma in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The available data provide strong evidence for the "three pillars of the Little Bang model": strong radial expansion of the collision fireball…
This is a critical review of the various observables that have been proposed to signal the change from dense hadronic matter to a quark-gluon plasma at high temperature or baryon density. I discuss current models of quark-gluon plasma…
I give a brief overview of recent theoretical developments concerning the high temperature phase of QCD, and the structure of hadronic wave functions at high energy.
The recent results on relativistic heavy-ion collisions are discussed. The most convincing quark-gluon plasma signatures at the LHC and the top RHIC energies are presented. Moreover, the possible methods of evaluating the energy threshold…
The strongly interacting matter under extreme conditions of temperature for the conjectured deconfined phase of the quark-gluon plasma is investigated. A systematic study of the form of the thermal ratio of the disorder deviation (TRDD) is…
An elementary introduction to the physics of quark-gluon plasma is given. We start with a sketchy presentation of the Quantum Chromodynamics which is the fundamental theory of strong interactions. The structure of hadrons built up of quarks…
I retrace the developments from Hagedorn's concept of a limiting temperature for hadronic matter to the discovery and characterization of the quark-gluon plasma as a new state of matter. My recollections begin with the transformation more…
In the context of the Hagedorn temperature half-centenary I describe our understanding of the hot phases of hadronic matter both below and above the Hagedorn temperature. The first part of the review addresses many frequently posed…
Modelling Quark-Gluon Plasma formation and decay in high energy heavy ion reactions is presented in a framework of a multi-module setup. The collective features, governing the equlibrated fluid dynamical stages of the model are emphasized.…
At high temperatures or densities matter formed by strongly interacting elementary particles (hadronic matter) is expected to undergo a transition to a new form of matter - the quark gluon plasma - in which elementary particles (quarks and…