RUI: Studies of Relativistic Heavy Ions Collisions in ALICE at the LHC

Chicago State University, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

It is a well-established fact that protons and neutrons are made up of smaller constituents called quarks and gluons. In collisions using two beams of heavy nuclei, a new state of matter is formed, called the quark-gluon plasma (QGP). This project will answer fundamental questions about the QGP, such as how matter is transformed from a collection of protons and neutrons to a free state where quarks and gluons can travel through space unhindered, much like they did in the primordial soup of matter following the Big Bang. The goal of this proposal is to the dynamics of the QGP in the presence of a high-velocity quark traveling through this medium. This provides more information on the flow of quarks and gluons in this unique state of matter. The research will be carried out at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) using the ALICE detector. The focus of the Heavy Ion program at CERN is to understand the behavior of matter at very high density, corresponding to conditions a fraction of a second after the Big Bang, when a hot, dense medium of quarks and gluons existed. The goal is to recreate and study these conditions via colliding nuclei at relativistic kinetic energies. Chicago State University will contribute to this effort by working on the physics analysis of jets containing quarkonia and strange particles. This study investigates the production mechanism of quarkonia and strangeness production in proton-proton collisions and the response of the quark-gluon medium to jet energy deposition in lead-lead collisions. The project also includes an R&D contribution to the construction of the Fast Interaction Trigger (FIT); this effort will provide opportunities for the involvement of undergraduate students in hardware projects: the developing, testing and commissioning of particle detectors.