Dilute nuclear matter with light clusters and in-medium effects: Towards a unified dynamical framework.

Understanding the dynamics of dilute nuclear matter is of crucial importance in several contexts, ranging from nuclear fragmentation to supernova collapse and gravitational-wave signal emission. However, within a unified dynamical framework, describing the concurrent appearance of light clusters, emerging from few-nucleon correlations, and heavier fragments formed due to large-scale correlations related to liquid-gas phase instabilities, remains a significant challenge. Within a linearized Vlasov dynamics, we show that light clusters, and in-medium effects in their propagation, have a strong influence on the growth and characteristics of the unstable modes that prelude the fragmentation of the system. These findings might pave the way for novel avenues in the study of dilute composite matter, envisioning intriguing consequences for heavy-ion collisions and in the broader astrophysical context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]