Non-congruent phase transitions in strongly interacting matter within the Quantum van der Waals model

TL;DR

This paper investigates the non-congruent liquid-gas phase transition in asymmetric nuclear matter using a Quantum van der Waals model, revealing unique features like continuous transitions and shifted critical points.

Contribution

It introduces a Quantum van der Waals model to study non-congruent phase transitions, highlighting new phenomena absent in symmetric nuclear matter.

Findings

Non-congruent LGPT shows continuous phase transformation.

Critical point location shifts with charge ratio $Q/B$.

Effects diminish when $Q/B$ approaches 0 or 0.5, or quantum effects are negligible.

Abstract

The non-congruent liquid-gas phase transition (LGPT) in asymmetric nuclear matter is studied using the recently developed Quantum van der Waals model in the grand canonical ensemble. Different values of the electric-to-baryon charge ratio, $Q/B$, are considered. This non-congruent LGPT exhibits several features which are not present in the congruent LGPT of symmetric nuclear matter. These include a continuous phase transformation, a change in the location of the critical point, and the separation of the critical point and the endpoints. The effects which are associated with the non-congruent LGPT become negligible for the following cases: when $Q/B$ approaches its limiting values, $0.5$ or $0$, or if quantum statistical effects can be neglected. The latter situation is realized when the particle degeneracy attains large values, $g\gtrsim 10$.