Causal-Horizon Scaling of Quarkonium Suppression in Strong QCD Fields

TL;DR

This paper introduces a geometric survival model for quarkonium suppression in strong QCD fields, linking suppression patterns to early-time color fields and predicting energy-dependent behaviors at RHIC and LHC.

Contribution

It proposes a novel early-time suppression mechanism based on Unruh causal scales, providing a unified description of bottomonium suppression and minimal momentum anisotropy.

Findings

Model reproduces observed suppression patterns of $$ states.

Predicts energy dependence of suppression at RHIC and LHC.

Explains small azimuthal anisotropy in quarkonium production.

Abstract

The simultaneous observation of strong sequential suppression and small azimuthal anisotropy for bottomonium states provides a stringent constraint on the time scale and geometry of the suppression mechanism. We propose an early-time geometric survival mechanism in which the strong pre-equilibrium color field induces a local proper acceleration and an associated Unruh causal scale. The survival probability is modeled by a WKB-motivated exponential controlled by the ratio of the quarkonium radius to the causal horizon. Combined with CGC-inspired centrality and energy scaling, the framework gives a compact description of the $\Upsilon(1S, 2S, 3S)$ suppression pattern and predicts a definite RHIC/LHC energy dependence. Because the suppression acts as a local scalar factor before hydrodynamic response develops, it naturally produces little additional quarkonium momentum anisotropy.