Probe nuclear structure using the anisotropic flow at the Large Hadron Collider

TL;DR

This study uses the AMPT model to explore how nuclear shape and surface diffuseness affect flow observables in Xe--Xe collisions at the LHC, aiming to better understand initial collision conditions.

Contribution

It demonstrates the influence of nuclear deformation and diffuseness on flow observables and highlights their potential to constrain initial conditions in heavy ion collisions.

Findings

Nuclear quadrupole deformation significantly affects central collisions.

Nuclear diffuseness impacts mid-central collisions.

Flow observable changes are insensitive to final state interaction parameters.

Abstract

Recent studies have shown that the shape and radial profile of the colliding nuclei have strong influences on the initial condition of the heavy ion collisions and the subsequent development of the anisotropic flow. Using A Multi-Phase Transport model (AMPT) model, we investigated the impact of nuclear quadrupole deformation $\beta_2$ and nuclear diffuseness $a_0$ of $^{129}$Xe on various of flow observables in Xe--Xe collisions at $\sqrtnn =$ 5.44 TeV. We found that $\beta_2$ has a strong influence on central collisions while $a_0$ mostly influences the mid-central collisions. The relative change of flow observables induced by a change in $\beta_2$ and $a_0$ are also found to be insensitive to the values of parameters controlling the strength of the interaction among final state particles. Our study demonstrates the potential for constraining the initial condition of heavy ion collisions using future system scans at the LHC.