High density QCD/Phase diagram
Abstract
This lecture provides an overview of the current status of our understanding of the QCD phase diagram at high baryon densities. I will discuss the theoretical foundations of QCD at finite baryon density and the challenges associated with first-principles calculations in this regime. The lecture will cover recent developments in effective models, functional methods, and hydrodynamic approaches that provide insights into the properties of QCD matter at high baryon densities. Special attention will be given to fluctuation observables as experimental probes of the QCD critical point, including the analysis of (factorial) cumulants of conserved charges and their behavior near the critical region. I will discuss the latest experimental results from the RHIC Beam Energy Scan program and their implications for our understanding of the QCD phase diagram. The lecture will also address the challenges in simultaneously describing proton and antiproton fluctuations in heavy-ion collisions and what this tells us about the equilibration properties of the created matter.
Lecture on high-density QCD and the QCD phase diagram as part of the Early Career Researcher Day at Quark Matter 2025. This lecture is designed for graduate students and early career researchers interested in the physics of the QCD phase diagram and the search for the QCD critical point.
The lecture will cover theoretical foundations, experimental observables, and recent results from heavy-ion collision experiments at RHIC and LHC, with a focus on fluctuation measurements as probes of critical behavior and the properties of QCD matter at high baryon densities.
Volodymyr Vovchenko
Theoretical Physicist
My group’s research interests include heavy-ion collisions, hot and dense QCD matter, neutron stars, and scientific computing