Search

We review recent and present new results on thermalization of nonabelian gauge theory obtained by exact numerical simulation of the real-time dynamics of two-dimensional SU(2) lattice gauge theory. We discuss: (1) tests confirming the Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis; (2) the entanglement entropy of sublattices, including the Page curve, the transition from area to volume scaling with increasing energy of the eigenstate and its time evolution that shows thermalization of localized regions to be a two-step process; (3) the absence of quantum many-body scars for $j_{\rm max}>1/2$; (4) the spectral form factor, which exhibits the expected slope-ramp-plateau structure for late times; (5) the entanglement Hamiltonian for SU(2), which has properties in accordance with the Bisognano-Wichmann theorem; and (6) a measure for non-stabilizerness or "magic" that is found to reach its maximum during thermalization. We conclude that the thermalization of nonabelian gauge theories is a promising process to establish quantum advantage.

We compute medium corrections to the energy-energy correlator (EEC) for jets in electron-nucleus collisions at leading order in the QCD coupling and the interaction of the jet with the medium. We derive an analytical expression for the modification of the EEC as a function of the opening angle and show that the modification is strongest at large angles within the jet cone. We obtain explicit results for the dependence of the modification on the jet energy, the scattering power of cold nuclear matter, and the path length within the medium. We extend our calculations to gluon jets in proton-nucleus collisions and compare our results with recent preliminary data for proton-lead collisions at the LHC. We also discuss the role of comovers on the EEC in p+Pb collisions., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures

Nonabelian gauge theories are chaotic in the classical limit. We discuss new evidence from SU(2) lattice gauge theory that they are also chaotic at the quantum level. We also describe possible future studies aimed at discovering the consequences of this insight., Comment: Lecture presented at the Particles and Plasmas Symposium 2024, Budapest (Hungary)

In this work we introduce a method for calculating holographic duals of BCFTs with more than two boundaries. We apply it to calculating the dynamics of entanglement entropy in a 1+1d CFT that is instantaneously split into multiple segments and calculate the entanglement entropy as a function of time for the case of two splits, showing that our approach reproduces earlier results for the double split case. Our manuscript lays the groundwork for future calculations of the entanglement entropy for more than two splits and systems at nonzero temperature., Comment: 22 pages, 10 figures

We study the entanglement entropy of Hamiltonian SU(2) lattice gauge theory in $2+1$ dimensions on linear plaquette chains and show that the entanglement entropies of both ground and excited states follow Page curves. The transition of the subsystem size dependence of the entanglement entropy from the area law for the ground state to the volume law for highly excited states is found to be described by a universal crossover function. Quantum many-body scars in the middle of the spectrum, which are present in the electric flux truncated Hilbert space, where the gauge theory can be mapped onto an Ising model, disappear when higher electric field representations are included in the Hilbert space basis. This suggests the continuum $(2+1)$-dimensional SU(2) gauge theory does not have such scarred states., Comment: 14 pages, 16 figures; v2: update the discussions of area-volume transition and scars; v3: published version; v4: corrected a typo in the legend of Fig.7

We report on progress in full quantum understanding of thermalization in non-Abelian gauge theories. Specifically, we test the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis for (2+1)-dimensional SU(2) lattice gauge theory., Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, contribution to the proceedings of the 30th International Conference on Ultra-relativistic Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions (Quark Matter 2023)

We present preliminary numerical evidence for the hypothesis that the Hamiltonian SU(2) gauge theory discretized on a lattice obeys the Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis (ETH). To do so we study three approximations: (a) a linear plaquette chain in a reduced Hilbert space limiting the electric field basis to $j=0,\frac{1}{2}$ , (b) a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice with periodic or closed boundary condition and the same Hilbert space constraint, and (c) a chain of only three plaquettes but such a sufficiently large electric field Hilbert space ($j \leq \frac{7}{2})$ that convergence of all energy eigenvalues in the analyzed energy window is observed. While an unconstrained Hilbert space is required to reach the continuum limit of SU(2) gauge theory, numerical resource constraints do not permit us to realize this requirement for all values of the coupling constant and large lattices. In each of the three studied cases we check first for random matrix theory (RMT) behavior in the eigenenergy spectrum and then analyze the diagonal as well as the off-diagonal matrix elements between energy eigenstates for a few operators. Within current uncertainties all results for (a), (b) and (c) agree with ETH predictions. Furthermore, we find the off-diagonal matrix elements of the electric energy operator exhibit RMT behavior in frequency windows that are small enough in (b) and (c). To unambiguously establish ETH behavior and determine for which class of operators it applies, an extension of our investigations is necessary., Comment: 18 pages, 27 figures, v2: minor changes, published version; v3: corrected a typo in the caption of Fig.8

We revisit the graphic table of QCD signatures in our 1996 Annual Reviews article "The Search for the Quark-Gluon Plasma" and assess the progress that has been made since its publication towards providing quantitative evidence for the formation of a quark-gluon plasma in relativistic heavy-ion collisions and its characteristic properties., Comment: 42 pages, 47 figures

We find a simple spin Hamiltonian to describe physical states of $2+1$ dimensional SU(2) lattice gauge theory on a honeycomb lattice with a truncation of the electric field representation at $j_{\rm max}=\frac{1}{2}$. The simple spin Hamiltonian only contains local products of Pauli matrices, even though Gauss's law has been completely integrated out., Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures; v2: minor changes

We explain how spin alignment of vector mesons can be induced by background fields, such as electromagnetic fields or soft gluon fields. Our study is based on the quantum kinetic theory of spinning quarks and antiquarks and incorporates the relaxation of the dynamically generated spin polarization. The spin density matrix of vector mesons is obtained by quark coalescence via the Wigner function and kinetic equation. Our approach predicts a local spin correlation that is distinct from the non-local expressions previously obtained in phenomenological derivations. We estimate the magnitude of such local correlations in the glasma model of the preequilibrium phase of relativistic heavy ion collisions. It is found that the resulting spin alignment could be greatly enhanced and may be comparable to the experimental measurement in order of magnitude. We further propose new phenomenological scenarios to qualitatively explain the transverse-momentum and centrality dependence of spin alignment in a self-consistent framework., Comment: 47 pages, 9 figures, minor revisions and extension, journal version

In preparation for the 2023 NSAC Long Range Plan (LRP), members of the Nuclear Science community gathered to discuss the current state of, and plans for further leveraging opportunities in, QIST in NP research at the Quantum Information Science for U.S. Nuclear Physics Long Range Planning workshop, held in Santa Fe, New Mexico on January 31 - February 1, 2023. The workshop included 45 in-person participants and 53 remote attendees. The outcome of the workshop identified strategic plans and requirements for the next 5-10 years to advance quantum sensing and quantum simulations within NP, and to develop a diverse quantum-ready workforce. The plans include resolutions endorsed by the participants to address the compelling scientific opportunities at the intersections of NP and QIST. These endorsements are aligned with similar affirmations by the LRP Computational Nuclear Physics and AI/ML Workshop, the Nuclear Structure, Reactions, and Astrophysics LRP Town Hall, and the Fundamental Symmetries, Neutrons, and Neutrinos LRP Town Hall communities., Comment: A white paper for the 2023 nuclear physics long-range planning activity, emerging from the workshop "Quantum Information Science for U.S. Nuclear Physics Long Range Planning'', held in Santa Fe, New Mexico on January 31 - February 1, 2023. 26 pages with 7 figures

The nuclear equation of state (EOS) is at the center of numerous theoretical and experimental efforts in nuclear physics. With advances in microscopic theories for nuclear interactions, the availability of experiments probing nuclear matter under conditions not reached before, endeavors to develop sophisticated and reliable transport simulations to interpret these experiments, and the advent of multi-messenger astronomy, the next decade will bring new opportunities for determining the nuclear matter EOS, elucidating its dependence on density, temperature, and isospin asymmetry. Among controlled terrestrial experiments, collisions of heavy nuclei at intermediate beam energies (from a few tens of MeV/nucleon to about 25 GeV/nucleon in the fixed-target frame) probe the widest ranges of baryon density and temperature, enabling studies of nuclear matter from a few tenths to about 5 times the nuclear saturation density and for temperatures from a few to well above a hundred MeV, respectively. Collisions of neutron-rich isotopes further bring the opportunity to probe effects due to the isospin asymmetry. However, capitalizing on the enormous scientific effort aimed at uncovering the dense nuclear matter EOS, both at RHIC and at FRIB as well as at other international facilities, depends on the continued development of state-of-the-art hadronic transport simulations. This white paper highlights the essential role that heavy-ion collision experiments and hadronic transport simulations play in understanding strong interactions in dense nuclear matter, with an emphasis on how these efforts can be used together with microscopic approaches and neutron star studies to uncover the nuclear EOS., Comment: White paper prepared for the 2023 Long Range Plan. v3: Updated version as published in Progress in Particle and Nuclear Physics. Note: the published version does not include the executive summary; in the updated arXiv version, the executive summary is included as an appendix. v4: Corrected list of authors

We investigate the interaction of strong color fields in the glasma stage of high-energy nuclear collisions with the spins of quarks and antiquarks. We employ the perturbative solution of the quantum kinetic theory for the spin transport of (massive) quarks in a background color field governed by the linearized Yang-Mills equation and derive expressions for the quark-spin polarization and quark-antiquark spin correlation at small momentum in terms of field correlators. For the Golec-Biernat W\"usthoff dipole distribution the quark-spin polarization vanishes, but the out-of-plane spin correlation of quarks and antiquarks is nonzero. Our order-of-magnitude estimate of the correlation far exceeds that caused by vorticity effects, but does not fully explain the data for vector meson alignment. We identify possible mechanisms that could further increase the predicted spin correlation., Comment: 36 pages, 5 figures, some errors corrected, conclusions unchanged, matched journal version

The dual holographic description has enjoyed many successes in explaining fundamental properties of the early stages of relativistic heavy ion collisions up to the formation of a minimal-viscosity quark-gluon fluid. However, there have been few attempts to extend its application beyond this stage. Here we explore the prospects for such an extension beyond the time of hadronization. Our discussion makes use of recent insights into the duality of entanglement properties of field theory states in the edge of Anti-de Sitter space and non-trivial topologies of horizons in the bulk, often referred to as ER = EPR duality. We discuss this topic from the point of view of heavy-ion phenomenology, review several relevant concepts, and map out a path toward combining them into a comprehensive, at least semiquantitative description of relativistic heavy ion collisions. We outline possible next steps in this direction.

This article summarizes our present knowledge about nuclear matter at the highest energy densities and its formation in relativistic heavy ion collisions. We review what is known about the structure and properties of the quark-gluon plasma and survey the observables that are used to glean information about it from experimental data., Comment: 110 pages

Written version of the theoretical summary lecture presented at the Strangeness in Quark Matter 2022 conference., Comment: SQM2033 proceedings

We make use of published yields for $D$-mesons and $J/\psi$ in Pb+Pb collisions at ALICE and a schematic description of the expansion of the hadron gas to study $D$-meson collisions during the hadronic break-up phase as a production mechanism for charmonium in relativistic heavy ion collisions at the Large Hadron Collider. Our calculation is based on chemical reaction rates with thermal cross sections for an effective meson interaction among pseudoscalar and vector mesons. We find that due to regeneration, the newly measured $J/\psi$ yields are consistent with anywhere from roughly $25\%$ to $110\%$ of the total yield present at hadronization time. This allows us to bound the fractional abundance of $J/\psi$ immediately after hadronization: $0.28 \leq \frac{dN_0^{J/\psi}/dy}{dN_{\rm eq}^{J/\psi}/dy} \leq 1.13$. Our results are robust under the relaxation of the particulars of our schematic description and imply that it will be difficult to distinguish regeneration during hadronization from regeneration by final-state hadronic interactions. Therefore, regeneration must be taken into account when modelling.

We study the important, yet widely overlooked, role of gluons for spin transport with a connection to local parity violation in quark gluon plasmas. We extend the newly developed quantum kinetic theory for relativistic fermions to the case coupled with non-Abelian chromo-electromagnetic fields and employ this formalism to investigate the spin polarization of quarks under dynamically generated color fields in near-equilibrium quark gluon plasmas. It is found that the spin polarization could be induced by parity-odd correlators of color fields, which may dominate over collisional effects at weak coupling. Our result provides with a possible explanation for the spin alignment of vector mesons measured in high-energy nuclear collisions and alludes to the connection with local parity violation., Comment: 6 page, contribution to the proceedings of Quark Matter 2022

We investigate the electromagnetic response of a viscous quark-gluon plasma in the framework of the relativistic Boltzmann equation with current conserving collision term. Our formalism incorporates dissipative effects at all orders in linear response to the electromagnetic field while accounting for the full space- and time-dependence of the perturbing fields. As an example, we consider the collision of two nuclei in a stationary, homogeneous quark-gluon plasma. We show that for large collision energies the induced magnetic fields are governed by the response of quark-gluon plasma along the light-cone. In this limit we derive an analytic expression for the magnetic field along the beam axis between the receding nuclei and show that its strength varies only weakly with collision energy for $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} \ge 30\,$GeV., Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures

I review the physics of the phase boundary between hadronic matter and quark matter from several different points of view. These include thermodynamics, statistical physics, and chemical kinetics. In particular, the review focuses on the role of the chemical freeze-out line and its relation to the concept of valence quark percolation. The review ends with some recollections of Jean Cleymans., Comment: Contribution to special issue of MDPI Physics in memory of Jean Cleymans

Feature attribution XAI algorithms enable their users to gain insight into the underlying patterns of large datasets through their feature importance calculation. Existing feature attribution algorithms treat all features in a dataset homogeneously, which may lead to misinterpretation of consequences of changing feature values. In this work, we consider partitioning features into controllable and uncontrollable parts and propose the Controllable fActor Feature Attribution (CAFA) approach to compute the relative importance of controllable features. We carried out experiments applying CAFA to two existing datasets and our own COVID-19 non-pharmaceutical control measures dataset. Experimental results show that with CAFA, we are able to exclude influences from uncontrollable features in our explanation while keeping the full dataset for prediction.

We study the important, yet widely overlooked, role of gluons for spin transport with a connection to local parity violation in quark gluon plasmas. We employ the formalism of quantum kinetic theory to quarks in weakly coupled quantum chromodynamics to derive the source terms for quark spin polarization. These source terms involve parity-odd correlators of dynamically generated color fields in near-equilibrium quark gluon plasmas and give rise to locally fluctuating axial charge currents. Our results provide a possible explanation for the spin alignment of vector mesons measured in high-energy nuclear collisions., Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure, corrected version post Erratum

The relation between the specific shear viscosity $\eta/s$ and the dimensionless jet quenching parameter $\hat{q}/T^3$ in perturbative QCD is explored at next-to-leading order in the coupling constant. It is shown that the relation changes little, although both transport coefficients independently are subject to large modifications at the NLO level. This finding confirms that the relationship is robust., Comment: Slightly amended version submitted for journal publication

Brief review of the hadronic probes that are used to diagnose the quark-gluon plasma produced in relativistic heavy ion collisions and interrogate its properties. Emphasis is placed on probes that have significantly impacted our understanding of the nature of the quark-gluon plasma and confirmed its formation., Comment: Prize lecture presented on April 19, 2021 at the Spring Meeting of the American Physical Society

We investigate the response of a relativistic plasma to electromagnetic fields in the framework of the Boltzmann equation incorporating a collision term in the relaxation rate approximation selected in a form assuring current conservation. We obtain an explicit solution for the linearized perturbation of the Fermi-Dirac equilibrium distribution in terms of the average relaxation rate $\kappa$. We study the resulting covariant, gauge invariant, and current conserving form of the polarization tensor in the ultrarelativistic and non-relativistic limits. We evaluate the susceptibility in the ultrarelativistic limit and explore their dependence on $\kappa$. Finally, we study the dispersion relations for the longitudinal and transverse poles of the propagator. We show that for $\kappa> 2\omega_p$, where $\omega_p$ is the plasma frequency, the plasma wave modes are overdamped. In the opposite case, $\kappa \ll \omega_p$, the propagating plasma modes are weakly damped., Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures

Motivated by recent applications of the open quantum system formalism to understand quarkonium transport in the quark-gluon plasma, we develop a set of coupled Boltzmann equations for open heavy quark-antiquark pairs and quarkonia. Our approach keeps track of the correlation between the heavy quark-antiquark pair from quarkonium dissociation and thus is able to account for both uncorrelated and correlated recombination. By solving the coupled Boltzmann equations for current heavy ion collision experiments, we find correlated recombination is crucial to describe the data of bottomonia nuclear modification factors. To further test the importance of correlated recombination in experiments, we propose a new observable: $\frac{R_{AA}[\chi_b(1P)]}{R_{AA}[\Upsilon(2S)]}$. Future measurements of this ratio will help distinguish calculations with and without correlated recombination., Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures; proceedings for 10th International Conference on Hard and Electromagnetic Probes of High-Energy Nuclear Collisions (Hard Probe 2020)

We investigate the shear viscosity $\eta$ of the classical Yang-Mills (CYM) field on a lattice by using the Green-Kubo formula, where the shear viscosity is calculated from the time-correlation function of the energy-momentum tensor in equilibrium. Dependence of the shear viscosity $\eta(g,T)$ on the coupling $g$ and temperature $T$ is represented by a scaling function $f_\eta(g^2T)$ as $\eta(g,T)=Tf_\eta(g^2T)$ due to the scaling-invariant property of the CYM. The explicit functional form of $f_\eta(g^2T)$ is successfully determined from the calculated shear viscosity: It turns out that $\eta(g,T)$ of the CYM field is proportional to $1/g^{1.10-1.88}$ at weak coupling, which is a weaker dependence on $g$ than that in the leading-order perturbation theory but consistent with that of the "anomalous viscosity" $\eta\propto 1/g^{1.5}$ under the strong disordered field. The obtained shear viscosity is also found to be roughly consistent with that estimated through the analysis of the anisotropy of the pressure of the CYM dynamics in the expanding geometry with recourse to a hydrodynamic equation., Comment: 10pages, 11figures

We develop a framework of coupled transport equations for open heavy flavor and quarkonium states, in order to describe their transport inside the quark-gluon plasma. Our framework is capable of studying simultaneously both open and hidden heavy flavor observables in heavy-ion collision experiments and can account for both, uncorrelated and correlated recombination. Our recombination implementation depends on real-time open heavy quark and antiquark distributions. We carry out consistency tests to show how the interplay among open heavy flavor transport, quarkonium dissociation and recombination drives the system to equilibrium. We then apply our framework to study bottomonium production in heavy-ion collisions. We include $\Upsilon(1S)$, $\Upsilon(2S)$, $\Upsilon(3S)$, $\chi_b(1P)$ and $\chi_b(2P)$ in the framework and take feed-down contributions during the hadronic gas stage into account. Cold nuclear matter effects are included by using nuclear parton distribution functions for the initial primordial heavy flavor production. A calibrated $2+1$ dimensional viscous hydrodynamics is used to describe the bulk QCD medium. We calculate both the nuclear modification factor $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ of all bottomonia states and the azimuthal angular anisotropy coefficient $v_2$ of the $\Upsilon(1S)$ state and find that our results agree reasonably with experimental measurements. Our calculations indicate that correlated cross-talk recombination is an important production mechanism of bottomonium in current heavy-ion experiments. The importance of correlated recombination can be tested experimentally by measuring the ratio of $R_{\mathrm{AA}}(\chi_b(1P))$ and $R_{\mathrm{AA}}(\Upsilon(2S))$., Comment: 36 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables; v2: changed to JHEP format, added a few references; v3: uncertainty analysis added, new measurement proposal to test correlated recombination; v4: minor change in Fig.7c and relevant discussions; v5: published version; link to the major part of the code: https://github.com/4KColo/Quarkonium_cython

Using the open quantum system formalism and effective field theory of QCD, we derive the Boltzmann transport equation of quarkonium inside the quark-gluon plasma. Our derivation illuminates that the success of transport equations in quarkonium phenomenology is closely related to the separation of scales in the problem., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; contribution to the proceedings of XXVIIIth International Conference on Ultrarelativistic Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions (Quark Matter 2019); updated a few references

This paper discusses possible phenomenological implications for p+A and A+A collisions of the results of recent numerical AdS/CFT calculations examining asymmetric collisions of planar shocks. In view of the extreme Lorentz contraction, we model highly relativistic heavy ion collisions (HICs) as a superposition of collisions between many near-independent transverse "pixels" with differing incident longitudinal momenta. It was found that also for asymmetric collisions the hydrodynamization time is in good approximation a proper time, just like for symmetric collisions, depending on the geometric mean of the longitudinally integrated energy densities of the incident projectiles. For realistic collisions with fluctuations in the initial energy densities, these results imply a substantial increase in the hydrodynamization time for highly asymmetric pixels. However, even in this case the local hydrodynamization time still is significantly smaller than perturbative results for the thermalization time., Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures, footnote added, layout changed to double column

A systematic search for a critical point in the phase diagram of QCD matter is underway at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and is planned at several future facilities. Its existence, if confirmed, and its location will greatly enhance our understanding of QCD. In this note we emphasize several important issues that are often not fully recognized in theoretical interpretations of experimental results relevant to the critical point search. We discuss ways in which our understanding on these issues can be improved., Comment: The title has been changed. One reference has been added. Physical Review C in press

Transport equations have been applied successfully to describe the quarkonium evolution inside the quark-gluon plasma, which include both plasma screening effects and recombination. We demonstrate how the quarkonium transport equation is derived from QCD by using the open quantum system framework and effective field theory. Weak coupling and Markovian approximations used in the derivation are justified from a separation of scales. By solving the equations numerically, we study the Upsilon production in heavy ion collisions., Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure; contribution to proceedings for the 18th International Conference on Hadron Spectroscopy and Structure (Hadron 2019)

This document reflects thoughts on opportunities from high-energy nuclear collisions in the 2020s., Comment: 10 pages, pdf

By coupling the Boltzmann transport equations of both quarkonium and open heavy quarks, we investigate their dynamical evolution inside the quark-gluon plasma and study quarkonium production in heavy ion collisions. The Boltzmann transport equation of quarkonium is derived from the open quantum system formalism and effective field theory of QCD by assuming quarkonium interacts weakly with the plasma. The dissociation and recombination terms in the Boltzmann equation are calculated in potential nonrelativistic QCD. It is shown that the combination of quarkonium dissociation, recombination, open heavy quark diffusion and energy loss can drive the system of quarkonium and open heavy quarks to detailed balance and kinetic thermalization. By solving the transport equations with initial momenta of quarkonia and heavy quarks sampled from PYTHIA and a hydrodynamic medium, we can calculate the nuclear modification factors of bottomonium and describe the data at both RHIC and LHC energies. The azimuthal angular anisotropy coefficient $v_2$ of $\Upsilon$(1S) in 5.02 TeV peripheral Pb-Pb collisions is also predicted., Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, contribution to the proceedings of Hard Probes 2018: International Conference on Hard and Electromagnetic Probes of High-Energy Nuclear Collisions

We consider the quarkonium diffusion, dissociation and recombination inside quark-gluon plasma. We compute scattering amplitudes in potential nonrelativistic QCD for relevant processes. These processes include the gluon absorption/emission at the order $gr$, inelastic scattering at the order $g^2r$ and elastic scattering with medium constituents at the order $g^2r^2$. We show these amplitudes satisfy the Ward identity. We also consider one-loop corrections. The dipole interaction between the color singlet and octet is not running at the one-loop level. Interference between the tree-level gluon absorption/emission and its thermal loop corrections cancels the collinear divergence in the $t$-channel inelastic scattering. The inelastic scattering has no soft divergence because of the finite binding energy of quarkonium. We write out the diffusion, dissociation and recombination terms explicitly for a Boltzmann transport equation and define the dissociation and recombination rates. Furthermore, we calculate the diffusion coefficient of quarkonium. We find our result of diffusion coefficient differs from a previous calculation by two to three orders of magnitude. We explain this and can reproduce the previous result in a certain limit. Finally we discuss two mechanisms of quarkonium energy loss inside quark-gluon plasma., Comment: 28 pages, 4 figures; added some explanations; added journal information

We first compare different approaches to estimates of the magnitude of the chiral magnetic effect in relativistic heavy ion collisions and show that their main difference lies in the assumptions on the length of persistence of the magnetic field generated by the colliding nuclei. We then analyze recent measurements of the global polarization of $\Lambda$ and $\bar \Lambda$ hyperons in terms of the bounds they set on the magnitude of the late time magnetic field.

IUPAP Report 41 is a document that gives summary information about the major nuclear physics facilities around the world. It is updated approximately every five years by Working Group 9 of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics. The introduction to the report gives an overview of the field of nuclear physics and outlines the major questions facing the field. This most recent version of Report 41 has been updated to reflect the state of the field in 2018. The full report can be found at http://www.triumf.info/hosted/iupap/icnp/report41.html

An introduction describing Walter Greiner's scientific life for the topical volume to be published by EPJA, Comment: 4 pages incl two Walter Greiner pictures

We give an estimate of $\Xi_{cc}^{++}$ production rate and transverse momentum spectra in relativistic heavy ion collisions. We use Boltzmann transport equations to describe the dynamical evolution of charm quarks and diquarks inside quark-gluon plasma. In-medium formation and dissociation rates of charm diquarks are calculated from potential non-relativistic QCD for the diquark sector. We solve the transport equations by Monte Carlo simulations. For $2.76$ TeV Pb-Pb collisions with $0-10\%$ centrality, the number of $\Xi_{cc}^{++}$ produced in the transverse momentum range $0-5$ GeV and rapidity from $-1$ to $1$ is roughly $0.02$ per collision. We repeat the calculation with a melting temperature $250$ MeV above which no diquarks can be formed. The number of $\Xi_{cc}^{++}$ produced in the same kinematic region is about $0.0125$ per collision. We discuss how to study diquarks at finite temperature on a lattice and construct the anti-triplet free energy in a gauge invariant but path dependent way. We also comment on extensions of the calculation to other doubly heavy baryons and doubly heavy tetraquarks and the feasibility of experimental measurements., Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, add a discussion of productions of other doubly heavy baryons and doubly heavy tetraquarks; add a discussion on diquark free energy on the lattice; add a comment on experimental feasibility; published version

The yields for hadrons and even light nuclei measured at midrapidity in relativistic heavy ion collisions are found to be dictated exclusively by their thermal Boltzmann factor for a common temperature of approximately 155 MeV. The reason for the validity of the thermal model description is widely discussed. Here, we offer a new type of argument in its favor.

We explore the fate of matter falling into a macroscopic Schwarzschild black hole for the simplified case of a radially collapsing thin spherical shell for which the back reaction of the geometry can be neglected. We treat the internal dynamics of the infalling matter in the framework of viscous relativistic hydrodynamics and calculate how the internal temperature of the collapsing matter evolves as it falls toward the Schwarzschild singularity. We find that viscous hydrodynamics fails when either, the dissipative radial pressure exceeds the thermal pressure and the total radial pressure becomes negative, or the time scale of variation of the tidal forces acting on the collapsing matter becomes shorter than the characteristic hydrodynamic response time., Comment: Invited talk presented at the FIAS International Symposion on Discoveries at the Frontiers of Science - Dedicated to the memory of Walter Greiner

We calculate the dissociation and recombination rates of $\Upsilon(1S)$ in quark-gluon plasma by using potential non-relativistic QCD. We then study the dynamical in-medium evolution of the $b\bar{b}-\Upsilon$ system in a periodic box via the Boltzmann equation and explore how the system reaches equilibrium. We find that interactions between the free heavy quarks and the medium are necessary for the system to reach equilibrium. We find that the angular distribution of $\Upsilon(1S)$ probes the stages at which recombination occurs. Finally, we study the system under a longitudinal expansion and show that different initial conditions evolve to distinct final ratios of hidden and open $b$ flavors. We argue that experimental measurements of the ratio could address open questions in the quarkonium production in heavy ion collisions., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, accepted version; a missing factor in Eq.(6) is added

This is a short survey of signatures and characteristics of the quark-gluon plasma in the light of experimental results that have been obtained over the past three decades. In particular, we present an in-depth discussion of the strangeness observable, including a chronology of the experimental effort to detect QGP at CERN-SPS, BNL-RHIC, and CERN-LHC., Comment: 30 pages, about 20 figures; Dedicated to our mentor Walter Greiner; to be published in the memorial volume edited by Peter O. Hess