Initialization of hydrodynamics in relativistic heavy ion collisions with an energy-momentum transport model

A key ingredient of hydrodynamical modeling of relativistic heavy ion collisions is thermal initial conditions, an input that is the consequence of a pre-thermal dynamics which is not completely understood yet. In the paper we employ a recently developed energy-momentum transport model of the pre-thermal stage to study influence of the alternative initial states in nucleus-nucleus collisions on flow and energy density distributions of the matter at the starting time of hydrodynamics. In particular, the dependence of the results on isotropic and anisotropic initial states is analyzed. It is found that at the thermalization time the transverse flow is larger and the maximal energy density is higher for the longitudinally squeezed initial momentum distributions. The results are also sensitive to the relaxation time parameter, equation of state at the thermalization time, and transverse profile of initial energy density distribution: Gaussian approximation, Glauber Monte Carlo profiles, etc. Also, test results ensure that the numerical code based on the energy-momentum transport model is capable of providing both averaged and fluctuating initial conditions for the hydrodynamic simulations of relativistic nuclear collisions.

Beam energy scan using a viscous hydro+cascade model

Following the experimental program at BNL RHIC, we perform a similar energy scan using 3+1D viscous hydrodynamics coupled to the UrQMD hadron cascade, and study the collision energy dependence of pion and kaon rapidity distributions and $m_T$-spectra, as well as charged hadron elliptic flow. To this aim the equation of state for finite baryon density from a Chiral model coupled to the Polyakov loop is employed for hydrodynamic stage. 3D initial conditions from UrQMD are used to study gradual deviation from boost-invariant scaling flow. We find that the inclusion of shear viscosity in the hydrodynamic stage of evolution consistently improves the description of the data for Pb-Pb collisions at CERN SPS, as well as of the elliptic flow measurements for Au-Au collisions in the Beam Energy Scan (BES) program at BNL RHIC. The suggested value of shear viscosity is $eta/sge0.2$ for $sqrt{s_{NN}}=6.3dots39$ GeV.

Tubular initial conditions and ridge formation

The 2D azimuth & rapidity structure of the two-particle correlations in relativistic A+A collisions is altered significantly by the presence of sharp inhomogeneities in superdense matter formed in such processes. The causality constraints enforce one to associate the long-range longitudinal correlations observed in a narrow angular interval, the so-called (soft) ridge, with peculiarities of the initial conditions of collision process. This studys objective is to analyze whether multiform initial tubular structures, undergoing the subsequent hydrodynamic evolution and gradual decoupling, can form the soft ridges. Motivated by the flux-tube scenarios, the initial energy density distribution contains the different numbers of high density tube-like boost-invariant inclusions that form a bumpy structure in the transverse plane. The influence of various structures of such initial conditions in the most central A+A events on the collective evolution of matter, resulting spectra, angular particle correlations and v_n-coefficients is studied in the framework of the HydroKinetic Model (HKM).

Femtoscopic scales in $p+p$ and $p+$Pb collisions in view of the uncertainty principle

A method for quantum corrections of Hanbury-Brown/Twiss (HBT) interferometric radii produced by semi-classical event generators is proposed. These corrections account for the basic indistinguishability and mutual coherence of closely located emitters caused by the uncertainty principle. A detailed analysis is presented for pion interferometry in $p+p$ collisions at LHC energy ($sqrt{s}=7$ TeV). A prediction is also presented of pion interferometric radii for $p+$Pb collisions at $sqrt{s}=5.02$ TeV. The hydrodynamic/hydrokinetic model with UrQMD cascade as afterburner is utilized for this aim. It is found that quantum corrections to the interferometry radii improve significantly the event generator results which typically overestimate the experimental radii of small systems. A successful description of the interferometry structure of $p+p$ collisions within the corrected hydrodynamic model requires the study of the problem of thermalization mechanism, still a fundamental issue for ultrarelativistic $A+A$ collisions, also for high multiplicity $p+p$ and $p+$Pb events.

Uniform description of bulk observables in the hydrokinetic model of A+A collisions at RHIC and LHC

A simultaneous description of hadronic yields; pion, kaon, and proton spectra; elliptic flows; and femtoscopy scales in the hydrokinetic model of A+A collisions is presented at different centralities for the top BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) 2.76-TeV energies. The initial conditions are based on the Glauber Monte-Carlo simulations. When going from RHIC to LHC energy in the model, the only parameters changed are the normalization of the initial entropy defined by the number of all charged particles in most central collisions, contribution to entropy from binary collisions and baryonic chemical potential. The hydrokinetic model is used in its hybrid version (hHKM), which provides the correct match (at the isochronic hypersurface) of the decaying hadron matter evolution with hadronic ultrarelativistic quantum molecular dynamics cascade. The results are compared with the standard hybrid models where hydrodynamics and hadronic cascade are matching just at the non-space-like hypersurface of chemical freeze-out or on the isochronic hypersurface. The modification of the particle number ratios at LHC caused, in particular, by the particle annihilations at the afterburn stage is also analyzed.

Hydrokinetic predictions for femtoscopy scales in A+A collisions in the light of recent ALICE LHC results

A study of energy behavior of the pion spectra and interferometry scales is carried out for the top SPS, RHIC and for LHC energies within the hydrokinetic approach. The main mechanisms that lead to the paradoxical, at first sight, dependence of the interferometry scales with an energy growth, in particular, a decrease $R_{out}/R_{side}$ ratio, are exposed. The hydrokinetic predictions for the HBT radii at LHC energies are compared with the recent results of the ALICE experiment.

Kaon and pion femtoscopy at top RHIC energy in hydrokinetic model

The hydrokinetic model is applied to restore the initial conditions and space-time picture of the matter evolution in central Au+Au collisions at the top RHIC energy. The analysis is based on the detailed reproduction of the pion and kaon momentum spectra and femtoscopic data in whole interval of the transverse momenta studied by both STAR and PHENIX collaborations. A good description of the pion and kaon transverse momentum spectra and interferometry radii is reached with both initial energy density profiles motivated by the Glauber and Color Glass Condensate (CGC) models, however, at different energy densities.

Evolution of energy density fluctuations in A+A collisions

Two-particle angular correlation for charged particles emitted in Au+Au collisions at the center-of-mass of 200 MeV measured at RHIC energies revealed novel structures commonly referred to as a near-side ridge. The ridge phenomenon in relativistic A+A collisions is rooted probably in the initial conditions of the thermal evolution of the system. In this study we analyze the evolution of the bumping transverse structure of the energy density distribution caused by fluctuations of the initial density distributions that could lead to the ridge structures. We suppose that at very initial stage of collisions the typical one-event structure of the initial energy density profile can be presented as the set of longitudinal tubes, which are boost-invariant in some space-rapidity region and are rather thin. These tubes have very high energy density comparing to smooth background density distribution. The transverse velocity and energy density profiles at different times of the evolution till the chemical freeze-out (at the temperature T=165 MeV) willbe reached by the system are calculated for sundry initial scenarios.

Kinetics vs hydrodynamics: generalization of Landau/Cooper-Frye prescription for freeze-out

The problem of spectra formation in hydrodynamic approach to A+A collisions is considered within the Boltzmann equations. It is shown analytically and illustrated by numerical calculations that the particle momentum spectra can be presented in the Cooper-Frye form despite freeze-out is not sharp and has the finite temporal width. The latter is equal to the inverse of the particle collision rate at points $(t_{sigma}({bf r},p),{bf r})$ of the maximal emission at a fixed momentum $p$. The set of these points forms the hypersurfaces $t_sigma({bf r},p)$ which strongly depend on the values of $p$ and typically do not enclose completely the initially dense matter. This is an important difference from the standard Cooper-Frye prescription (CFp), with a common freeze-out hypersurface for all $p$, that affects significantly the predicted spectra. Also, the well known problem of CFp as for negative contributions to the spectra from non-space-like parts of the freeze-out hypersurface is naturally eliminated in this improved prescription.

Hydro-kinetic approach to relativistic heavy ion collisions

We develop a combined hydro-kinetic approach which incorporates a hydrodynamical expansion of the systems formed in textit{A}+textit{A} collisions and their dynamical decoupling described by escape probabilities. The method corresponds to a generalized relaxation time ($tau_{text{rel}}$) approximation for the Boltzmann equation applied to inhomogeneous expanding systems; at small $tau_{text{rel}}$ it also allows one to catch the viscous effects in hadronic component - hadron-resonance gas. We demonstrate how the approximation of sudden freeze-out can be obtained within this dynamical picture of continuous emission and find that hypersurfaces, corresponding to a sharp freeze-out limit, are momentum dependent. The pion $m_{T}$ spectra are computed in the developed hydro-kinetic model, and compared with those obtained from ideal hydrodynamics with the Cooper-Frye isothermal prescription. Our results indicate that there does not exist a universal freeze-out temperature for pions with different momenta, and support an earlier decoupling of higher $p_{T}$ particles. By performing numerical simulations for various initial conditions and equations of state we identify several characteristic features of the bulk QCD matter evolution preferred in view of the current analysis of heavy ion collisions at RHIC energies.