Gluon decay into heavy quark pair under a strong magnetic field

TL;DR

This paper investigates how extremely strong magnetic fields in heavy-ion collisions enable gluons to decay into heavy quark pairs, a process forbidden in vacuum but possible under external fields, by calculating the decay rate.

Contribution

It provides the first leading-order calculation of gluon decay into heavy quark pairs in a uniform magnetic field, highlighting the role of external fields in particle decay processes.

Findings

Gluon decay into heavy quarks is enabled by strong magnetic fields.

Decay rate is computed at leading order under external magnetic fields.

External fields recover energy-momentum conservation allowing the decay.

Abstract

Due to the extreme large magnetic field produced in the initial stage of non-central heavy-ion collision, the dynamical process of gluon decay into heavy quark pair will take place under an external field rather than in vacuum. Unlike in the vacuum case, where the process is forbidden by energy momentum conservation, under the external field, a process emerges considering the background energy which recovers the conservation. We calculate the gluon decay rate at leading order under a uniform magnetic field.