1,149 Search Results

Here, we report the first evidence of spin interference in exclusive 𝐽/𝜓 → 𝑒⁺⁢𝑒⁻ photoproduction in ultraperipheral heavy-ion collisions at STAR at $$\sqrt{𝑠_{𝑁⁢𝑁}}$$ = 200  GeV. In Au + Au collisions, a negative cos⁡(2⁢𝜙) modulation is found for 𝑝_𝑇 < 120  MeV/𝑐 with a significance of 3.2⁢𝜎, while the isobar data (Ru + Ru, Zr + Zr) show a consistent negative modulation with a significance of 1.9⁢𝜎, opposite in sign to that in 𝜌⁰ → 𝜋⁺⁢𝜋⁻ photoproduction. This establishes for the first time that the interference sign is controlled by the spin structure of the final-state daughters, resolving the ambiguity present inmore » the all-boson 𝜌⁰ channel. The compact 𝐽/𝜓 probes gluon distributions at perturbative scales, resulting in a weaker modulation and providing stringent constraints on color glass condensate calculations. These findings demonstrate that spin-dependent interference in heavy vector mesons provides a new, experimentally accessible handle on gluon structure beyond traditional cross-section measurements.« less

Using a sample of ( 2712.4 ± 14.3 ) × 10 6     ψ ( 3686 ) events collected with the BESIII detector, we perform a search for the isospin-violating decays χ c J → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . ( J = 0 , 1 , 2 ) and η c → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . No significant signal for χ c J or η c is observed in the Λ Σ ¯   0 invariant mass distribution. The upper limits on the branching fractions at the 90% confidencemore » level are set to be B ( χ c 0 → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . ) < 1.5 × 10 − 6 , B ( χ c 1 → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . ) < 1.6 × 10 − 6 , B ( χ c 2 → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . ) < 1.7 × 10 − 6 , and B ( η c → Λ Σ ¯   0 + c . c . ) < 6.2 × 10 − 5 for the first time.« less

A two-decade-old puzzle in heavy-ion one-nucleon knockout reactions is the strong correlation between the reduction factor R_S = σ_exp/σ_th and the Fermi surface asymmetry ΔS. Theoretical cross sections typically rely on spectroscopic factors (SFs) from shell model (SM) calculations, which neglect continuum coupling effects. Here, we employ the Gamow shell model (GSM), which explicitly incorporates continuum coupling, to compute SFs for p-shell nuclei and predict corresponding theoretical cross sections. Systematic calculations demonstrate that using GSM-derived SFs substantially reduces discrepancies between theoretical and experimental results. This improvement is particularly significant for deeply bound nucleon knockout in nuclei near the dripline, wheremore » traditional SM-based calculations fall short. As a result, using GSM SFs, the ratio R_s exhibits no pronounced dependence on ΔS. Furthermore, both the ratio of GSM SFs to SM SFs and their corresponding reaction cross sections ratios exhibit a strong ΔS dependence. We have also compared GSM SFs and cross sections with those from the no-core shell model calculations, giving a similar pronounced sensitivity to ΔS. Detailed analysis attributes these correlations to threshold effects for SFs in weakly bound systems. Overall, incorporating continuum coupling via GSM enhances the reliability of SF predictions for exotic, weakly bound nuclei and provides key insights toward resolving the enduring puzzle in heavy-ion knockout reactions from a nuclear structure perspective.« less

The correlation between the mean transverse momentum, [p_T], and the squared anisotropic flow, $$v^2_n$$, on an event-by-event basis has been suggested to be influenced by the initial conditions in heavy-ion collisions. We present measurements of the variances and covariance of [p_T] and $$v^2_n$$, along with their dimensionless ratio, for Au+Au collisions at various beam energies: $$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$$ = 14.6, 19.6, 27, 54.4, and 200 GeV. Our measurements reveal a distinct energy-dependent behavior in the variances and covariances. In addition, the dimensionless ratio displays a similar behavior across different beam energies. We compare our measurements with hydrodynamic models and similar measurements frommore » Pb+Pb collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). These findings provide valuable insights into the beam energy dependence of the specific shear viscosity (η/s) and initial-state effects, allowing for differentiating between different initial-state models.« less

Rapidity-odd directed flow v₁ measurements are presented for $K^±$ and $$K^0_S$$ in Au + Au collisions for $$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$$ from 3.0 to 3.9 GeV with the STAR experiment. For comparison, v₁ of π^±, protons, and Λ from the same collisions are also discussed. The mid-rapidity v₁ slope dv₁/dy|_y=0 for protons and Λ is positive in these collisions. On the other hand, v₁ slope of kaons exhibits a strong dependence: negative at p_T < 0.6 GeV/c and positive at higher p_T. A similar p_T dependence is also evident for the v₁ slope of charged pions. Compared to the spectator-removed calculations in Au+Aumore » collisions at $$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$$ = 3.0–3.9 GeV, the JAM model demonstrates a pronounced shift of the v₁ slopes of mesons towards the negative direction. It suggests that the shadowing effect of the spectators plays an important role in the observed kaon anti-flow at low p_T in the high baryon density region of non-central collisions.« less

Cyclotron Radiation Emission Spectroscopy (CRES) is a novel technique for the precise measurement of relativistic electron energy. This technique is being employed by the Project 8 collaboration for measuring a high-precision tritium beta decay spectrum to perform a frequency-based measurement of the neutrino mass. In this work, we describe the Project 8 Phase II apparatus, used for the detection of the CRES signal from the conversion electrons of ^83m Kr and the first CRES measurement of the beta-decay spectrum of molecular tritium.

We report measurements of charmonium sequential suppression in Ru+Ru and Zr+Zr collisions at $$\sqrt{s_{NN}}$$ =200  GeV with the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The inclusive yield ratio of 𝜓⁡(2⁢S) to J/𝜓 as a function of transverse momentum is reported, along with the centrality dependence of the double ratio, defined as the 𝜓⁡(2⁢S) to J/𝜓 ratio in heavy-ion collisions relative to that in 𝑝 +𝑝 collisions. In the 0–80% centrality class, the double ratio is found to be 0.41±0.10 (stat)±0.03 (syst)±0.02 (ref), lower than unity with a significance of 5.6 standard deviations. This provides experimental evidence that 𝜓⁡(2⁢S) is significantly moremore » suppressed than J/𝜓 in heavy-ion collisions at RHIC. This sequential suppression pattern seems to increase from peripheral to central collisions, but with no significant dependence on the transverse momentum.« less

The ramp-reversal memory (RRM) effect in metal–insulator transition metal oxides (TMOs), a non-volatile resistance change induced by repeated temperature cycling, has attracted considerable interest in neuromorphic computing and non-volatile memory devices. Our previous defect motion model successfully explained RRM in vanadium dioxide (VO₂), capturing observed critical temperature shifts and memory accumulation throughout the sample. However, this approach lacked interactions between metallic and insulating domains. Here, we extend our model by combining a correlated Random Field Ising Model with defect diffusion-segregation, enabling accurate hysteresis modeling while predicting the relationship between RRM and domain interactions. Our simulations demonstrate that the maximum RRMmore » occurs when the turnaround temperature approaches the inflection point. This peak in RRM vs. turnaround temperature is consistent with prior transport measurements, as well as our own optical measurements reported here. Significantly, we find that increasing nearest-neighbor interactions enhances the maximum memory effect, thus providing a clear mechanism for optimizing RRM performance. Since our model employs minimal assumptions, we predict that RRM should be a widespread phenomenon in materials exhibiting patterned phase coexistence of electronic domains. This work not only advances fundamental understanding of memory behavior in TMOs but also establishes a much-needed theoretical framework for optimizing device applications.« less

The vacuum is now understood to have a rich and complex structure, characterized by fluctuating energy fields and a condensate of virtual quark–antiquark pairs. The spontaneous breaking of the approximate chiral symmetry, signalled by the nonvanishing quark condensate $$\langle$$$$q\bar{q}$$$$\rangle$$, is dynamically generated through topologically nontrivial gauge configurations such as instantons. The precise mechanism linking the chiral symmetry breaking to the mass generation associated with quark confinement remains a profound open question in quantum chromodynamics (QCD)—the fundamental theory of strong interaction. High-energy proton–proton collisions could liberate virtual quark–antiquark pairs from the vacuum that subsequently undergo confinement to form hadrons, whose propertiesmore » could serve as probes into QCD confinement and the quark condensate. Here we report evidence of spin correlations in $$Λ\bar{Λ}$$ hyperon pairs inherited from spin-correlated strange quark–antiquark virtual pairs. Measurements by the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory reveal a relative polarization signal of (18 ± 4)% that links the virtual spin-correlated quark pairs from the QCD vacuum to their final-state hadron counterparts. Crucially, this correlation vanishes when the hyperon pairs are widely separated in angle, consistent with the decoherence of the quantum system. Our findings provide a new experimental model for exploring the dynamics and interplay of quark confinement and entanglement.« less

High-energy, heavy-ion collisions can create local domains of chirality-imbalanced quarks, reflecting the topological features of quantum chromodynamics. The chiral magnetic effect (CME) predicts an electric charge separation of quarks in such topological domains along the magnetic field ($$\vec{B}$$) generated by the passing of two high-Z nuclei. Here, we use a correlation observable Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}$$ between charged meson pairs to detect the CME-induced charge separation and a novel event shape selection (ESS) method to mitigate the background effects related to elliptic flow (𝑣₂). The ESS method classifies events based on the emission pattern of final-state particles and determines Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}_{ESS}$$ from the zero-flowmore » limit. We reconstruct the $$\vec{B}$$ field direction from the spectator nucleons, which minimizes backgrounds unrelated to the collective motion of the system. In this work, we report the measurements of Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}$$ and a background indicator Δ⁢𝛾$$^{132}$$ in Au+Au collisions from the Brookhaven National Laboratory Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) Beam Energy Scan phase II and at the top RHIC energy. After background suppression, Δ⁢𝛾$$^{132}_{ESS}$$ aligns with zero, and Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}_{ESS}$$ is reduced to no more than 20% of Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}$$. We observe a finite residual charge separation with 2.5⁢𝜎, 3⁢𝜎, and 3.2⁢𝜎 significance in the 20–50% centrality range of Au + Au collisions at 11.5, 14.6, and 19.6 GeV. The results at 17.3 and 27 GeV also show positive values but with a lower significance of 1.3⁢𝜎 and 1.1⁢𝜎, respectively. The corresponding Δ⁢𝛾$$^{112}_{ESS}$$ values at 7.7, 9.2, and 200 GeV are consistent with zero within uncertainties.« less