# Shining a Light on the QGP - Electroweak Probes Experimental Summary

## TL;DR

This paper summarizes recent experimental results on electroweak probes in quark-gluon plasma studies, highlighting their role in characterizing the initial state, properties, and evolution of the QGP in high-energy collisions.

## Contribution

It provides an overview of recent electroweak probe measurements from the 9th Hard Probes Conference, emphasizing new insights into QGP properties and initial conditions.

## Key findings

- Electromagnetic probes help determine energy and particle density for QGP creation.
- Light-by-light scattering enables precision tests of QED and magnetic field measurements.
- High-
7 photons, Z, and W bosons reveal initial state and scaling in various collision systems.

## Abstract

Objects which are only subject to the electroweak force are an ideal probe of QCD in high density and temperature environments as they carry information about the conditions during their production out of the QGP without interacting with it. Thus they can be used to characterize the initial state as well as several properties of the QGP and its evolution. Within this article the recent results regarding these electroweak probes presented at the 9$^{th}$ Hard Probes Conference (Aix-les-Bains, France, 2018) will be summarized. In particular the following questions will be addressed: Can we determine the necessary energy and particle density for the QGP creation using electromagnetic probes? Can we use light-by-light scattering in heavy-ion collisions to do precision tests of QED and measure the magnetic field of the QGP? How are quark jets modified by the presence of the QGP? What can we learn about the initial state and scaling properties in pp, p(d)-A and A-A collisions from the production of high \pt\ photons, Z$^0$ and W$^\pm$ bosons? In the version provided on arXiv, additional plots are included in the appendix with respect to the version submitted for publication in the journal.