Project acronym CGCglasmaQGP
Project The nonlinear high energy regime of Quantum Chromodynamics
Researcher (PI) Tuomas Veli Valtteri Lappi
Host Institution (HI) JYVASKYLAN YLIOPISTO
Country Finland
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE2, ERC-2015-CoG
Summary "This proposal concentrates on Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) in its least well understood "final frontier": the high energy limit. The aim is to treat the formation of quark gluon plasma in relativistic nuclear collisions together with other high energy processes in a consistent QCD framework. This project is topical now in order to fully understand the results from the maturing LHC heavy ion program. The high energy regime is characterized by a high density of gluons, whose nonlinear interactions are beyond the reach of simple perturbative calculations. High energy particles also propagate nearly on the light cone, unaccessible to Euclidean lattice calculations. The nonlinear interactions at high density lead to the phenomenon of gluon saturation. The emergence of the "saturation scale", a semihard typical transverse momentum, enables a weak coupling expansion around a nonperturbatively large color field. This project aims to make progress both in collider phenomenology and in more conceptual aspects of nonabelian gauge field dynamics at high energy density:
1. Significant advances towards higher order accuracy will be made in cross section calculations for processes where a dilute probe collides with the strong color field of a high energy nucleus.
2. The quantum fluctuations around the strong color fields in the initial stages of a relativistic heavy ion collision will be analyzed with a new numerical method based on an explicit linearization of the equations of motion, maintaining a well defined weak coupling limit.
3. Initial conditions for fluid dynamical descriptions of the quark gluon plasma phase in heavy ion collisions will be obtained from a constrained QCD calculation.
We propose to achieve these goals with modern analytical and numerical methods, on which the P.I. is a leading expert. This project would represent a leap in the field towards better quantitative first principles understanding of QCD in a new kinematical domain."
Summary
"This proposal concentrates on Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) in its least well understood "final frontier": the high energy limit. The aim is to treat the formation of quark gluon plasma in relativistic nuclear collisions together with other high energy processes in a consistent QCD framework. This project is topical now in order to fully understand the results from the maturing LHC heavy ion program. The high energy regime is characterized by a high density of gluons, whose nonlinear interactions are beyond the reach of simple perturbative calculations. High energy particles also propagate nearly on the light cone, unaccessible to Euclidean lattice calculations. The nonlinear interactions at high density lead to the phenomenon of gluon saturation. The emergence of the "saturation scale", a semihard typical transverse momentum, enables a weak coupling expansion around a nonperturbatively large color field. This project aims to make progress both in collider phenomenology and in more conceptual aspects of nonabelian gauge field dynamics at high energy density:
1. Significant advances towards higher order accuracy will be made in cross section calculations for processes where a dilute probe collides with the strong color field of a high energy nucleus.
2. The quantum fluctuations around the strong color fields in the initial stages of a relativistic heavy ion collision will be analyzed with a new numerical method based on an explicit linearization of the equations of motion, maintaining a well defined weak coupling limit.
3. Initial conditions for fluid dynamical descriptions of the quark gluon plasma phase in heavy ion collisions will be obtained from a constrained QCD calculation.
We propose to achieve these goals with modern analytical and numerical methods, on which the P.I. is a leading expert. This project would represent a leap in the field towards better quantitative first principles understanding of QCD in a new kinematical domain."
Max ERC Funding
1 935 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2016-10-01, End date: 2021-09-30
Project acronym PRESTISSIMO
Project Plasma Reconnection, Shocks and Turbulence in Solar System Interactions: Modelling and Observations
Researcher (PI) MINNA MARIA EMILIA Palmroth
Host Institution (HI) HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO
Country Finland
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE9, ERC-2015-CoG
Summary This project combines the forefront space physics with top-tier high performance computing. Three phenomena are above others in importance in explaining plasma behaviour in the Solar-Terrestrial system, laboratories, fusion devices, and astrophysical domains: 1) magnetic reconnection enabling energy and mass transfer between magnetic domains, 2) collisionless shocks forming due to supersonic relative flow speeds between plasmas, and 3) particle acceleration associated with both. These processes are critical in understanding the scientific foundation of space weather, i.e., harmful effects caused by enhanced radiation and dynamical processes that endanger space- and ground-based technological systems or human life. Space weather forecasts require physics-based models; however, to date only simple plasma descriptions have been used in the global context. We have developed the first 6-dimensional global magnetospheric kinetic simulation in the world, Vlasiator, promising a grand leap both in understanding fundamental space plasma physics, and in improving the accuracy of present space weather models. Combining the unique Vlasiator with newest spacecraft data, local kinetic physics can be interpreted in global context in a ground-breaking fashion. We examine in the global and self-consistent context
1. Near-Earth reconnection,
2. Ion-scale phenomena in the near-Earth shocks,
3. Particle acceleration by shocks and reconnection,
4. Inner magnetospheric wave-particle processes, and the consequent particle precipitation into the ionosphere.
The proposed work is now feasible thanks to increased computational capabilities and Vlasiator. The newest space missions produce high-fidelity multi-point observations that require directly comparable global kinetic simulations offered by Vlasiator. The proposing team has an outstanding record and a leading role in global space physics modelling.
Summary
This project combines the forefront space physics with top-tier high performance computing. Three phenomena are above others in importance in explaining plasma behaviour in the Solar-Terrestrial system, laboratories, fusion devices, and astrophysical domains: 1) magnetic reconnection enabling energy and mass transfer between magnetic domains, 2) collisionless shocks forming due to supersonic relative flow speeds between plasmas, and 3) particle acceleration associated with both. These processes are critical in understanding the scientific foundation of space weather, i.e., harmful effects caused by enhanced radiation and dynamical processes that endanger space- and ground-based technological systems or human life. Space weather forecasts require physics-based models; however, to date only simple plasma descriptions have been used in the global context. We have developed the first 6-dimensional global magnetospheric kinetic simulation in the world, Vlasiator, promising a grand leap both in understanding fundamental space plasma physics, and in improving the accuracy of present space weather models. Combining the unique Vlasiator with newest spacecraft data, local kinetic physics can be interpreted in global context in a ground-breaking fashion. We examine in the global and self-consistent context
1. Near-Earth reconnection,
2. Ion-scale phenomena in the near-Earth shocks,
3. Particle acceleration by shocks and reconnection,
4. Inner magnetospheric wave-particle processes, and the consequent particle precipitation into the ionosphere.
The proposed work is now feasible thanks to increased computational capabilities and Vlasiator. The newest space missions produce high-fidelity multi-point observations that require directly comparable global kinetic simulations offered by Vlasiator. The proposing team has an outstanding record and a leading role in global space physics modelling.
Max ERC Funding
1 998 054 €
Duration
Start date: 2016-06-01, End date: 2022-05-31
