Double-slit experiment at Fermi scale: Coherent photoproduction in heavy-ion collisions
Abstract
The double-slit experiment has become a classic thought experiment, for its clarity in expressing the central puzzle of quantum mechanics - wave-particle complementarity. Such wave-particle duality continues to be challenged and investigated in a broad range of entities with electrons, neutrons, helium atoms, C60 fullerenes, Bose-Einstein condensates, and biological molecules. In this article, we present a double-slit scenario at Fermi scale with new entities - coherent photon products in heavy-ion collisions. Virtual photons from the electromagnetic fields of relativistic heavy ions can fluctuate to quark-antiquark pairs, scatter off a target nucleus and emerge as vector mesons. The two colliding nuclei can take turns to act as targets, forming a double-slit interference pattern. Furthermore, the "which-way" information can be partially solved by the violent hadronic interactions in the proposed scenario, which demonstrates a key concept of quantum mechanics - complementary principle.
- Authors:
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Nuclear Physics (NP)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1527059
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1562490
- Report Number(s):
- BNL-211881-2019-JAAM
Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9985; PRVCAN; 061901
- Grant/Contract Number:
- SC0012704
- Resource Type:
- Published Article
- Journal Name:
- Physical Review C
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Physical Review C Journal Volume: 99 Journal Issue: 6; Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9985
- Publisher:
- American Physical Society
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS
Citation Formats
Zha, W., Ruan, L., Tang, Z., Xu, Z., and Yang, S. Double-slit experiment at Fermi scale: Coherent photoproduction in heavy-ion collisions. United States: N. p., 2019.
Web. doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.99.061901.
Zha, W., Ruan, L., Tang, Z., Xu, Z., & Yang, S. Double-slit experiment at Fermi scale: Coherent photoproduction in heavy-ion collisions. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.99.061901
Zha, W., Ruan, L., Tang, Z., Xu, Z., and Yang, S. Wed .
"Double-slit experiment at Fermi scale: Coherent photoproduction in heavy-ion collisions". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.99.061901.
@article{osti_1527059,
title = {Double-slit experiment at Fermi scale: Coherent photoproduction in heavy-ion collisions},
author = {Zha, W. and Ruan, L. and Tang, Z. and Xu, Z. and Yang, S.},
abstractNote = {The double-slit experiment has become a classic thought experiment, for its clarity in expressing the central puzzle of quantum mechanics - wave-particle complementarity. Such wave-particle duality continues to be challenged and investigated in a broad range of entities with electrons, neutrons, helium atoms, C60 fullerenes, Bose-Einstein condensates, and biological molecules. In this article, we present a double-slit scenario at Fermi scale with new entities - coherent photon products in heavy-ion collisions. Virtual photons from the electromagnetic fields of relativistic heavy ions can fluctuate to quark-antiquark pairs, scatter off a target nucleus and emerge as vector mesons. The two colliding nuclei can take turns to act as targets, forming a double-slit interference pattern. Furthermore, the "which-way" information can be partially solved by the violent hadronic interactions in the proposed scenario, which demonstrates a key concept of quantum mechanics - complementary principle.},
doi = {10.1103/PhysRevC.99.061901},
journal = {Physical Review C},
number = 6,
volume = 99,
place = {United States},
year = {2019},
month = {6}
}
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Figures / Tables:
FIG. 1: Amplitude and momentum distribution patterns of coherent J/$ψ$ photoproduction with different scenarios for b = 15 fm at mid-rapidity (y=0). Panel a: point source scenario, panel b: Woods-Saxion distribution, panel c: realistic scenario described in the text. Panel d - f show the corresponding momentum distributions according tomore »
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Figures / Tables found in this record:
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