Dense Nuclear Matter Equation of State from Heavy-Ion Collisions

Note to applicants: The workshop will be held in a combined in-person and online format (hybrid). Morning talks will be given on-site (with a few exceptions if appropriate) and broadcast via ZOOM, and some of the afternoon discussions will also be opened to off-site participants. The INT requires all visitors to be vaccinated against COVID-19.  

In the “Comments” section on the application form, please state whether you are applying to attend in-person, virtually, or have no preference. Feel free to provide more information if needed. 

Disclaimer: Please be aware that due to ongoing concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, this workshop may be changed from a hybrid workshop to online-only.

Constraining the dependence of the dense nuclear matter equation of state (EOS) on baryon density is a long-standing problem of nuclear physics. Despite active development in recent years, it is still a challenge for theoretical approaches – primarily hadronic transport simulations – to set constraints on the nuclear matter EOS at high baryon densities using the old (AGS, GSI), recent (RHIC BES FXT, HADES, NSCL), or future experimental results (FAIR, FRIB) on ratios of charged pions, neutron and proton yields and differential flow, charged particle flow, spectra, and femtoscopic correlations. Moreover, the new experiments not only measure these traditional observables with higher precision (and, in some cases, with radioactive beams), but they will also study new observables sensitive to the EOS, such as fluctuations and correlations.

To encourage necessary developments, needed for putting a meaningful constraint on the EOS, the following questions will be considered at the workshop:

– Can we reconcile data from current and previous experiments?

– What other observables could enable the extraction of the EOS?

– Are the nuclear matter EOSs from astrophysics consistent with heavy-ion collision observables in the range rho < 4.0rho_0?

– Can we find a flexible common parametrization of the EOS, applicable to neutron star calculations and different types of heavy-ion collisions simulations?

– What improvements on the constraints on the EOS can we expect from future heavy-ion experiments?

– What development is necessary for transport codes to address the above questions?

The meeting agenda will strongly emphasize semi-formal and casual discussions (afternoons), informed by talks on the latest developments and persistent challenges (mornings).

There will be a $60 registration fee to attend the workshop in-person. The registration fee includes participation in the workshop, lectures, and coffee breaks.