Signatures of the Tricritical Point in QCD

Journal Article · Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 EST 1998 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.81.4816· OSTI ID:673878

Stephanov, M ^[1]; Rajagopal, K ^[2]; Shuryak, E ^[3]

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1. Institute for Theoretical Physics, State University of New York, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3840 (United States)
2. Center for Theoretical Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States)
3. Department of Physics and Astronomy, State University of New York, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3800 (United States)

Several approaches to QCD with two {ital massless} quarks at finite temperature T and baryon chemical potential {mu} suggest the existence of a tricritical point on the boundary of the phase with spontaneously broken chiral symmetry. In QCD with {ital massive} quarks there is then a critical point at the end of a first order transition line. We discuss possible experimental signatures of this point, which provide information about its location and properties. We propose a combination of event-by-event observables, including suppressed fluctuations in T and {mu} and, simultaneously, enhanced fluctuations in the multiplicity of soft pions. {copyright} {ital 1998} {ital The American Physical Society }

• DOE Contract Number: FC02-94ER40818; FG02-88ER40388
• OSTI ID: 673878
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 81, Issue 22; Other Information: PBD: Nov 1998
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

66 PHYSICS
QUANTUM CHROMODYNAMICS
PHASE DIAGRAMS
QUARKS
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
BARYONS
CHIRAL SYMMETRY