The study of correlations and fluctuations can provide evidence for the production of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP) in relativistic heavy ion collisions. Various theories predict that the production of a QGP phase in relativistic heavy ion collisions
could produce significant event-by-event correlations and fluctuations in, transverse momentum, multiplicity, etc. Some of the recent results using STAR at RHIC will be presented along with results from other experiments at RHIC. The focus is on forward-backward multiplicity correlations, balance function, charge and transverse momentum fluctuations, and correlations.
Measurements of HBT correlations and event-by-event fluctuations of mean pT and the net charge in Pb-Au collisions at 40, 80, and 158 AGeV/c are presented. From comparisons of HBT radii measured from AGS to RHIC energies, a universal mean free path
of pions at the thermal freeze-out of about 1 fm is derived. Non-statistical mean pT fluctuations of about 0.7 % are measured, which are somewhat smaller than fluctuations at RHIC. No indication for the QCD critical point is observed. Fluctuations of the net charge are reproduced by RQMD and URQMD models, but significantly larger than prediction in equilibrated QGP.
The multiplicity fluctuations in A+A collisions at SPS and RHIC energies are studied within the HSD transport approach. We find a dominant role of the fluctuations in the nucleon participant number for the final fluctuations. In order to extract phys
ical fluctuations one should decrease the fluctuations in the participants number. This can be done considering very central collisions. The system size dependence of the multiplicity fluctuations in central A+A collisions at the SPS energy range -- obtained in the HSD and UrQMD transport models -- is presented. The results can be used as a `background for experimental measurements of fluctuations as a signal of the critical point. Event-by-event fluctuations of the $K/pi$, $K/p$ and $p/pi$ ratios in A+A collisions are also studied. Event-by-event fluctuations of the kaon to pion number ratio in nucleus-nucleus collisions are studied for SPS and RHIC energies. We find that the HSD model can qualitatively reproduce the measured excitation function for the $K/pi$ ratio fluctuations in central Au+Au (or Pb+Pb) collisions from low SPS up to top RHIC energies. The forward-backward correlation coefficient measured by the STAR Collaboration in Au+Au collisions at RHIC is also studied. We discuss the effects of initial collision geometry and centrality bin definition on correlations in nucleus-nucleus collisions. We argue that a study of the dependence of correlations on the centrality bin definition as well as the bin size may distinguish between these `trivial correlations and correlations arising from `new physics.
We present first results on event-by-event elliptic flow fluctuations in nucleus-nucleus collisions corrected for effects of non-flow correlations where the magnitude of non-flow correlations has been independently measured in data. Over the measured
range in centrality, we see large relative fluctuations of 25-50%. The results are consistent with predictions from both color glass condensate and Glauber type initial condition calculations of the event-by-event participant eccentricity fluctuations.
This paper presents results on event-by-event elliptic flow fluctuations in Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN)=200Gev, where the contribution from non-flow correlations has been subtracted. An analysis method is introduced to measure non-flow correlation
s, relying on the assumption that non-flow correlations are most prominent at short ranges (Delta eta < 2). Assuming that non-flow correlations are of the order that is observed in p+p collisions for long range correlations (Delta eta > 2), relative elliptic flow fluctuations of approximately 30-40% are observed. These results are consistent with predictions based on spatial fluctuations of the participating nucleons in the initial nuclear overlap region. It is found that the long range non-flow correlations in Au+Au collisions would have to be more than an order of magnitude stronger compared to the p+p data to lead to the observed azimuthal anisotropy fluctuations with no intrinsic elliptic flow fluctuations.