Time-Dependent Observables in Heavy Ion Collisions I: Setting up the Formalism

We adapt the Schwinger-Keldysh formalism to study heavy-ion collisions in perturbative QCD. Employing the formalism, we calculate the two-point gluon correlation function $G_{22}^{a\mu,b\nu}$ due to the lowest-order classical gluon fields in the McLerran-Venugopalan model of heavy ion collisions and observe an interesting transition from the classical fields to the quasi-particle picture at later times. Motivated by this observation, we push the formalism to higher orders in the coupling and calculate the contribution to $G_{22}^{a\mu,b\nu}$ coming from the diagrams representing a single rescattering between two of the produced gluons. We assume that the two gluons go on mass shell both before and after the rescattering. The result of our calculation depends on the ordering between the proper time of the rescattering $\tau_Z$ and the proper time $\tau$ when the gluon distribution is measured. For (i) $\tau_Z\gg 1/Q_s$ and $\tau-\tau_Z\gg 1/Q_s$ (with $Q_s$ the saturation scale) we obtain the same results as from the Boltzmann equation. For (ii) $\tau-\tau_Z\gg \tau_Z\gg 1/Q_s$ we end up with a result very different from kinetic theory and consistent with a picture of "free-streaming" particles. Due to the approximations made, our calculation is too coarse to indicate whether the ordering (i) or (ii) is the correct one: to resolve this controversy, we shall present a detailed diagrammatic calculation of the rescattering correction in the $\varphi^4$ theory in the second paper of this duplex.Comment: 45 pages, 9 figure

Time-Dependent Observables in Heavy Ion Collisions II: in Search of Pressure Isotropization in the φ4\varphi^4 Theory

To understand the dynamics of thermalization in heavy ion collisions in the perturbative framework it is essential to first find corrections to the free-streaming classical gluon fields of the McLerran-Venugopalan model. The corrections that lead to deviations from free streaming (and that dominate at late proper time) would provide evidence for the onset of isotropization (and, possibly, thermalization) of the produced medium. To find such corrections we calculate the late-time two-point Green function and the energy-momentum tensor due to a single $2 \to 2$ scattering process involving two classical fields. To make the calculation tractable we employ the scalar $\varphi^4$ theory instead of QCD. We compare our exact diagrammatic results for these quantities to those in kinetic theory and find disagreement between the two. The disagreement is in the dependence on the proper time $\tau$ and, for the case of the two-point function, is also in the dependence on the space-time rapidity $\eta$: the exact diagrammatic calculation is, in fact, consistent with the free streaming scenario. Kinetic theory predicts a build-up of longitudinal pressure, which, however, is not observed in the exact calculation. We conclude that we find no evidence for the beginning of the transition from the free-streaming classical fields to the kinetic theory description of the produced matter after a single $2 \to 2$ rescattering.Comment: 46 pages, 9 figure

Thermodynamics of an accelerated expanding universe

We investigate the laws of thermodynamics in an accelerating universe driven by dark energy with a time-dependent equation of state. In the case we consider that the physically relevant part of the Universe is that envelopped by the dynamical apparent horizon, we have shown that both the first law and second law of thermodynamics are satisfied. On the other hand, if the boundary of the Universe is considered to be the cosmological event horizon the thermodynamical description based on the definitions of boundary entropy and temperature breaks down. No parameter redefinition can rescue the thermodynamics laws from such a fate, rendering the cosmological event horizon unphysical from the point of view of the laws of thermodynamics.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figure