Relativistic Hadron-Hadron Collisions in the Ultra-Relativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics Model (UrQMD)

Hadron-hadron collisions at high energies are investigated in the Ultra-relativistic-Quantum-Molecular-Dynamics approach (UrQMD). This microscopic transport model is designed to study pp, pA and A+A collisions. It describes the phenomenology of hadronic interactions at low and intermediate energies ($\sqrt s <5$ GeV) in terms of interactions between known hadrons and their resonances. At high energies, $\sqrt s >5$ GeV, the excitation of color strings and their subsequent fragmentation into hadrons dominates the multiple production of particles in the UrQMD model. The model shows a fair overall agreement with a large body of experimental h-h data over a wide range of h-h center-of-mass energies. Hadronic reaction data with higher precision would be useful to support the use of the UrQMD model for relativistic heavy ion collisions.Comment: 66 pages, Download the UrQMD model from http://www.th.physik.uni-frankfurt.de/~urqmd/urqmd.htm

Microscopic Analysis of Thermodynamic Parameters from 160 MeV/n - 160 GeV/n

Microscopic calculations of central collisions between heavy nuclei are used to study fragment production and the creation of collective flow. It is shown that the final phase space distributions are compatible with the expectations from a thermally equilibrated source, which in addition exhibits a collective transverse expansion. However, the microscopic analyses of the transient states in the reaction stages of highest density and during the expansion show that the system does not reach global equilibrium. Even if a considerable amount of equilibration is assumed, the connection of the measurable final state to the macroscopic parameters, e.g. the temperature, of the transient ''equilibrium'' state remains ambiguous.Comment: 13 pages, Latex, 8 postscript figures, Proceedings of the Winter Meeting in Nuclear Physics (1997), Bormio (Italy

Signatures of dense hadronic matter in ultrarelativistic heavy ion reactions

The behavior of hadronic matter at high baryon densities is studied within Ultrarelativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics (URQMD). Baryonic stopping is observed for Au+Au collisions from SIS up to SPS energies. The excitation function of flow shows strong sensitivities to the underlying equation of state (EOS), allowing for systematic studies of the EOS. Dilepton spectra are calculated with and without shifting the $\rho$ pole. Except for S+Au collisions our calculations reproduce the CERES data.Comment: Invited talk at RHIC-theory workshop at BNL july 8-1

Nonequilibrium models of relativistic heavy-ion collisions

To be published in J. Phys. G - Proceedings of SQM 2004 : We review the results from the various hydrodynamical and transport models on the collective flow observables from AGS to RHIC energies. A critical discussion of the present status of the CERN experiments on hadron collective flow is given. We emphasize the importance of the flow excitation function from 1 to 50 A.GeV: here the hydrodynamic model has predicted the collapse of the v2-flow ~ 10 A.GeV; at 40 A.GeV it has been recently observed by the NA49 collaboration. Since hadronic rescattering models predict much larger flow than observed at this energy we interpret this observation as evidence for a first order phase transition at high baryon density r b. Moreover, the connection of the elliptic flow v2 to jet suppression is examined. It is proven experimentally that the collective flow is not faked by minijet fragmentation. Additionally, detailed transport studies show that the away-side jet suppression can only partially (< 50%) be due to hadronic rescattering. Furthermore, the change in sign of v1, v2 closer to beam rapidity is related to the occurence of a high density first order phase transition in the RHIC data at 62.5, 130 and 200 A.GeV

Equilibrium and non-equilibrium effects in relativistic heavy ion collisions

The hypothesis of local equilibrium (LE) in relativistic heavy ion collisions at energies from AGS to RHIC is checked in the microscopic transport model. We find that kinetic, thermal, and chemical equilibration of the expanding hadronic matter is nearly reached in central collisions at AGS energy for t >_ fm/c in a central cell. At these times the equation of state may be approximated by a simple dependence P ~= (0.12-0.15) epsilon. Increasing deviations of the yields and the energy spectra of hadrons from statistical model values are observed for increasing bombarding energies. The origin of these deviations is traced to the irreversible multiparticle decays of strings and many-body (N >_ 3) decays of resonances. The violations of LE indicate that the matter in the cell reaches a steady state instead of idealized equilibrium. The entropy density in the cell is only about 6% smaller than that of the equilibrium state

Microscopic Models for Ultrarelativistic Heavy Ion Collisions

In this paper, the concepts of microscopic transport theory are introduced and the features and shortcomings of the most commonly used ansatzes are discussed. In particular, the Ultrarelativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics (UrQMD) transport model is described in great detail. Based on the same principles as QMD and RQMD, it incorporates a vastly extended collision term with full baryon-antibaryon symmetry, 55 baryon and 32 meson species. Isospin is explicitly treated for all hadrons. The range of applicability stretches from $E_{lab} 200$ GeV/nucleon, allowing for a consistent calculation of excitation functions from the intermediate energy domain up to ultrarelativistic energies. The main physics topics under discussion are stopping, particle production and collective flow.Comment: 129 pages, pagestyle changed using US letter (8.5x11 in) format. The whole paper (13 Mb ps file) could also be obtained from ftp://ftp.th.physik.uni-frankfurt.de/pub/urqmd/ppnp2.ps.g

Transition to resonance-rich matter in heavy ion collisions at RHIC energies

The equilibration of hot and dense nuclear matter produced in the central region in central Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s}=200$ AGeV is studied within the microscopic transport model UrQMD. The pressure here becomes isotropic at $t \approx 5$ fm/c. Within the next 15 fm/c the expansion of the matter proceeds almost isentropically with the entropy per baryon ratio $S/A \approx 150$. During this period the equation of state in the $(P,\epsilon)$-plane has a very simple form, $P=0.15 \epsilon$. Comparison with the statistical model (SM) of an ideal hadron gas reveals that the time of $\approx 20$ fm/$c$ may be too short to attain the fully equilibrated state. Particularly, the fractions of resonances are overpopulated in contrast to the SM values. The creation of such a long-lived resonance-rich state slows down the relaxation to chemical equilibrium and can be detected experimentally.Comment: Talk at the conference Strangeness'2000, to be published in J. of Phys.

Microscopic calculations of stopping and flow from 160AMeV to 160AGeV

The behavior of hadronic matter at high baryon densities is studied within Ultrarelativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics (URQMD). Baryonic stopping is observed for Au+Au collisions from SIS up to SPS energies. The excitation function of flow shows strong sensitivities to the underlying equation of state (EOS), allowing for systematic studies of the EOS. Effects of a density dependent pole of the $\rho$-meson propagator on dilepton spectra are studied for different systems and centralities at CERN energies.Comment: Proceedings of the Quark Matter '96 Conference, Heidelberg, German

Strangeness enhancement from strong color fields at RHIC

In ultra-relativistic heavy ion collisions, early stage multiple scatterings may lead to an increase of the color electric field strength. Consequently, particle production - especially heavy quark (and di-quark) production - is greatly enhanced according to the Schwinger mechanism. We test this idea via the Ultra-relativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics model (UrQMD) for Au+Au collisions at the full RHIC energy ($\sqrt{s} = 200$ AGeV). Relative to p+p collisions, a factor of 60, 20 and 7 enhancement respectively, for $\Omega$ ($sss$), $\Xi$ ($ss$), and $\Lambda$, $\Sigma$ ($s$) is predicted for a model with increased color electric field strength

Local Thermal and Chemical Equilibration and the Equation of State in Relativistic Heavy Ion Collisions

Thermodynamical variables and their time evolution are studied for central relativistic heavy ion collisions from 10.7 to 160 AGeV in the microscopic Ultrarelativistic Quantum Molecular Dynamics model (UrQMD). The UrQMD model exhibits drastic deviations from equilibrium during the early high density phase of the collision. Local thermal and chemical equilibration of the hadronic matter seems to be established only at later stages of the quasi- isentropic expansion in the central reaction cell with volume 125 fm$^{3}$. distributions at all collision energies for $t\geq 10 fm/c$ with a unique Baryon energy spectra in this cell are approximately reproduced by Boltzmann rapidly dropping temperature. At these times the equation of state has a simple form: $P \cong (0.12-0.15) \epsilon$. At 160 AGeV the strong deviation from chemical equilibrium is found for mesons, especially for pions, even at the late stage of the reaction. The final enhancement of pions is supported by experimental data.Comment: 17 Pages, LaTex, 8 eps figures. Talk given at SQM'98 conference, 20-24 July 1998, Padova, Italy, submitted to J. Phys.