The Phase Diagram of Strongly-Interacting Matter

TL;DR

This paper reviews the phase diagram of strongly-interacting matter, exploring the transition from confined hadrons to quark-gluon plasma, its cosmological and astrophysical implications, and recent experimental progress in high-energy nuclear collisions.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the physical aspects, cosmic relevance, and recent experimental advances related to the phases of strongly-interacting matter.

Findings

Identification of the transition from hadronic matter to quark-gluon plasma.

Insights into the early universe's evolution and neutron star cores.

Summary of recent experimental results from ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions.

Abstract

A fundamental question of physics is what ultimately happens to matter as it is heated or compressed. In the realm of very high temperature and density the fundamental degrees of freedom of the strong interaction, quarks and gluons, come into play and a transition from matter consisting of confined baryons and mesons to a state with 'liberated' quarks and gluons is expected. The study of the possible phases of strongly-interacting matter is at the focus of many research activities worldwide. In this article we discuss physical aspects of the phase diagram, its relation to the evolution of the early universe as well as the inner core of neutron stars. We also summarize recent progress in the experimental study of hadronic or quark-gluon matter under extreme conditions with ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions.