From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics

A special issue of Physics (ISSN 2624-8174). This special issue belongs to the section "High Energy Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 March 2023) | Viewed by 16907

Special Issue Editors

1. Department of Experimental Nuclear Physics and Cosmophysics, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI, 31 Kashirskoe Shosse, 115409 Moscow, Russia 2. Veksler and Baldin Laboratory of High Energy Physics, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Joliot-Curie st., 6, 141980 Dubna, Russia
Interests: relativistic heavy-ion collisions; hadrons; correlations; particle resonances; hypernuclei
NRC “Kurchatov Institute” – IHEP, Protvino 142281, Moscow Region, Russia
Interests: experimental physics; spin physics; high energy physics; hadron physics; detectors (calorimeters)
Department of Experimental Nuclear and Space Physics, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), 31 Kashirskoe Highway, Moscow 115409, Russia
Interests: experimental nuclear and space physics; astroparticles; elementary particle detectors; nuclear electronic; computing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that a series of works presented at the International Conference on Particle Physics and Astrophysics (ICPPA-2022, https://indico.particle.mephi.ru/event/275/) has been selected for this Special Issue of MDPI Physics

The Standard Model precisely describes the main phenomena of particle interactions, but there are still many remaining questions which require the development of new approaches. Testing of the Standard Model limitations and the search for signs of new physics are significant aspect of scientific programs for all LHC (Large Hadron Collider) experiments. Relativistic heavy-ion collisions provide an opportunity to measure properties of the quark–gluon state of matter. Experimental and theoretical developments in the field of relativistic heavy-ion collisions and high energy physics are discussed. Recent results from accelerator and reactor neutrino experiments and future prospects are also covered, as well as methods of experimental physics and detector studies in all the listed areas.

The aim of this Special Issue is to reflect the most recent trends in the fields of high energy, heavy ion, neutrino physics, and detector technology development, as well as to provide the foundation for an interdisciplinary scientific dialogue.

Dr. Grigory A. Nigmatkulov
Prof. Dr. Vasilii Mochalov
Dr. Mikhail G. Korotkov
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • astroparticles
  • particles
  • detectors
  • scintillators
  • fibers
  • gamma ray
  • dark matter
  • space
  • weakly interacting massive particles (WIMP)
  • axion
  • neural network
  • high energy physics
  • gravity
  • astrophysiсs
  • new physics
  • Standard Model

Published Papers (14 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 1795 KiB  
Article
MHD Simulations of the Solar Corona to Determine the Conditions for Large Solar Flares and the Acceleration of Cosmic Rays during Them
by Alexander Podgorny, Igor Podgorny and Alexei Borisenko
Physics 2023, 5(3), 895-910; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5030058 - 22 Aug 2023
Viewed by 1021
Abstract
Solar cosmic rays (SCRs) are generated during the primordial energy release in solar flares. This explosive process takes place in the solar corona above the active region. It represents the fast release of the magnetic field energy of the current sheet, which is [...] Read more.
Solar cosmic rays (SCRs) are generated during the primordial energy release in solar flares. This explosive process takes place in the solar corona above the active region. It represents the fast release of the magnetic field energy of the current sheet, which is formed near a singular magnetic field line. Solar cosmic rays appear as a result of the acceleration of charged particles, mainly protons, by an inductive electric field in the current sheet equal to the field E = V × B/c (with V the speed of plasma and B the magnetic field near the current sheet, and c the speed of light). To study the mechanism of solar flares and obtain conditions for studying SCR acceleration, it is necessary to carry out magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of flare situations in the solar corona above a real active region. Methods of stabilization were developed which made it possible to partially solve the problem of numerical instabilities. MHD simulations shows complicated configurations near the singular line. Comparison of the results of the MHD simulations with observations showed the general agreement of the positions of the current sheets with regions of intense flare radiation. However, there are some problems with the details of such coincidences. The results obtained in this paper show the possibility of improving the methods of MHD simulation in order to solve the problems that arise during solving of MHD equations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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9 pages, 524 KiB  
Communication
Towards Study of Two-Particle PT Correlations in Hadronic Interactions at NICA
by Aida Galoyan, Alberto Ribon and Vladimir Uzhinsky
Physics 2023, 5(3), 823-831; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5030052 - 26 Jul 2023
Viewed by 783
Abstract
A new method for studying two-particle transverse momentum (PT) correlations in soft hadronic interactions is proposed. It is shown that Monte Carlo models: PYTHIA 6 and Geant4 FTF (FRITIOF), give different predictions for the correlations in proton–proton interactions. The correlations [...] Read more.
A new method for studying two-particle transverse momentum (PT) correlations in soft hadronic interactions is proposed. It is shown that Monte Carlo models: PYTHIA 6 and Geant4 FTF (FRITIOF), give different predictions for the correlations in proton–proton interactions. The correlations are connected with Schwinger’s mechanism of particle creation. These correlations can be studied in current and future experiments in high energy physics, in particular, at the Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility (NICA). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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14 pages, 4514 KiB  
Article
Current Status of the Novel 3D SuperFGD Detector for the T2K Experiment
by Anna Dergacheva, Denis Chernov, Angelina Chvirova, Gleb Erofeev, Daria Fedorova, Sergei Fedotov, Marat Khabibullin, Alexei Khotjantsev, Yury Kudenko, Alexander Mefodiev, Oleg Mineev and Nikolai Yershov
Physics 2023, 5(3), 690-703; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5030046 - 02 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1238
Abstract
This paper is devoted to the current status of the novel fully active 3D (three-dimensional) fine-grained scintillator detector SuperFGD as a main part of the near off-axis detector upgrade program for the T2K experiment. The following important components related to the SuperFGD such [...] Read more.
This paper is devoted to the current status of the novel fully active 3D (three-dimensional) fine-grained scintillator detector SuperFGD as a main part of the near off-axis detector upgrade program for the T2K experiment. The following important components related to the SuperFGD such as SuperFGD electronics and mechanics, wavelength shifting (WLS) fibers, and light emitting diode (LED) calibration system are also discussed here as well as the detector’s near future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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16 pages, 2717 KiB  
Article
Probing Gluons with the Future Spin Physics Detector
by Alexey Guskov, Amaresh Datta, Anton Karpishkov, Igor Denisenko and Vladimir Saleev
Physics 2023, 5(3), 672-687; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5030044 - 27 Jun 2023
Viewed by 1158
Abstract
In this paper, we review the physics studies to be performed with the Spin Physics Detector (SPD) at the Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility (NICA) which is a multi-purpose experiment designed to study nucleon spin structure in the three dimensions. With capabilities to collide [...] Read more.
In this paper, we review the physics studies to be performed with the Spin Physics Detector (SPD) at the Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility (NICA) which is a multi-purpose experiment designed to study nucleon spin structure in the three dimensions. With capabilities to collide polarized protons and deuterons with center-of-mass energy up to 27 GeV and luminosity up to 1032cm2s1 for protons (an order of magnitude less for deuterons), the experiment is considered to allow measurements of cross-sections and spin asymmetries of hadronic processes sensitive to the unpolarized and various polarized (helicity, Sivers, Boer-Mulders) gluon distributions inside the nucleons. Results from the SPD will be complimentary to the present high-energy spin experiments at the RHIC (Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider) facility or future experiments such as the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) at BNL (Brookhaven National Laboratory) and the AFTER experiment at the LHC (Large Hadron Collider) in understanding the spin structure of the basic building blocks of visible matter. Monte Carlo simulation-based results presented here demonstrate the impact of the SPD asymmetry measurements on gluon helicity parton distribution function (PDF) and gluon Sivers functions. With polarized deuteron collisions, the SPD is expected to be the unique laboratory for probing tensor-polarized gluon distributions. Additionally, there are possibilities of colliding other light nuclei, such as carbon, at reduced collision energy and luminosity during the first stage of the experiment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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19 pages, 529 KiB  
Article
Interacting Colour Strings Approach in Modelling of Rapidity Correlations
by Daria Prokhorova, Evgeny Andronov and Grigory Feofilov
Physics 2023, 5(2), 636-654; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020042 - 20 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 864
Abstract
In this paper, using the concept of multi-pomeron exchange, we develope a Monte Carlo model of interacting quark–gluon strings acting as particle-emitting sources aimed at describing inelastic proton–proton interactions at high energies. The implemented 3D (three-dimensional) dynamics of colour string formation resulted in [...] Read more.
In this paper, using the concept of multi-pomeron exchange, we develope a Monte Carlo model of interacting quark–gluon strings acting as particle-emitting sources aimed at describing inelastic proton–proton interactions at high energies. The implemented 3D (three-dimensional) dynamics of colour string formation resulted in their finite length in the rapidity space and in the fluctuating event-by-event spatial density. Thus, this results in string cluster formation because of the fusion mechanism and the appearance of long-range multiplicity and mean transverse momentum (mean-pT) correlations in rapidity. We study, via the pseudorapidity dependence, the sensitivity to the details of the 3D dynamical formation of strings for several observables such as the forward–backward correlation coefficient value, strongly intensive quantity, Σ, and the “almost” strongly intensive observable, the variance, σC2, of the distribution of the asymmetry coefficient, C. The strongly intensive quantity Σ is used in this study to suppress trivial statistical fluctuations in the number of particles emitting similar types of sources and to reveal the intrinsic fluctuations of a single source. We demonstrate the connection between Σ and such often used observables as cumulants, factorial cumulants, and σC2. We stress the importance of the contribution of “short” strings and the event asymmetry of the initial conditions on the long-range correlation measures. We argue that string cluster formation because of the fusion mechanism explains the collective effects seen in multiplicity and transverse momentum–multiplicity, pTN, long-range correlation functions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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7 pages, 585 KiB  
Communication
Photons as a Signal of Deconfinement in Hadronic Matter under Extreme Conditions
by Sergei Nedelko and Aleksei Nikolskii
Physics 2023, 5(2), 547-553; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020039 - 16 May 2023
Viewed by 872
Abstract
The photon production by conversion of gluons ggγ via quark loop in the framework of the mean-field approach to the QCD (quantunm chromodynamics) vacuum is studied here. According to the domain model of QCD vacuum, the confinement phase is dominated [...] Read more.
The photon production by conversion of gluons ggγ via quark loop in the framework of the mean-field approach to the QCD (quantunm chromodynamics) vacuum is studied here. According to the domain model of QCD vacuum, the confinement phase is dominated by Abelian (anti-)self-dual gluon fields, while the deconfinement phase is characterized by a strong chromomagnetic field. In the confinement phase, photon production is impossible due to the random spacial orientation of the statistical ensemble of vacuum fields. However, the conditions of Furry theorem are not satisfied in the deconfinement phase, the conversion of gluons is nonzero and, in addition, photon distribution has a strong angular anisotropy. Thus, the photon production in the discussed process acts as one of the important features of transition in quark-gluon plasma to the deconfinement phase. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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9 pages, 725 KiB  
Communication
MPD TPC Alignment
by Valentin Kuzmin
Physics 2023, 5(2), 508-516; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020036 - 23 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1313
Abstract
A method of determining the position of the readout sectors of a time projection chamber using experimental data is proposed. Considering the results of modeling the response of sensitive elements of the time projection chamber of the multipurpose detector, three types of tracks [...] Read more.
A method of determining the position of the readout sectors of a time projection chamber using experimental data is proposed. Considering the results of modeling the response of sensitive elements of the time projection chamber of the multipurpose detector, three types of tracks were reconstructed: cosmic muons, beams of the laser detector system, and muons from the interaction of nuclei. Employing data from the experiment simulation and the proposed method of finding the position and orientation of sectors of the time projection chamber, the accuracy of the chamber alignment is investigated. For cosmic and laser rays, the accuracy is approximately the same. It is about 750 microns for the shift of the origin of the sector and 7 arc minutes for Euler angles. The accuracy in the case of muons born in collisions of nuclei is several times worse. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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9 pages, 3711 KiB  
Communication
The Scattering and Neutrino Detector at the Large Hadron Collider in CERN
by Natalia Polukhina, Nina Konovalova and Tatiana Shchedrina
Physics 2023, 5(2), 499-507; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020035 - 20 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1403
Abstract
SND@LHC (Scattering Neutrino Detector at the Large Hadron Collider) is a compact and stand-alone experiment to perform measurements with neutrinos produced in the LHC in a hitherto unexplored pseudorapidity region of 7.2 < η < 8.6. The experiment is located in the Tl18 [...] Read more.
SND@LHC (Scattering Neutrino Detector at the Large Hadron Collider) is a compact and stand-alone experiment to perform measurements with neutrinos produced in the LHC in a hitherto unexplored pseudorapidity region of 7.2 < η < 8.6. The experiment is located in the Tl18 (Target line 18) LHC tunnel, 480 m downstream of the ATLAS detector interaction point. The SND@LHC detector is composed of a hybrid system based on an 800 kg target mass of tungsten plates, interleaved with emulsion and electronic trackers, followed downstream by a muon system. This configuration allows us to distinguish all three neutrino flavors, opening a unique opportunity to probe the physics of heavy flavor production in the LHC in a region that is not accessible to the ATLAS, CMS, LHCb and FASER experiments. The detector concept is also well suited to searching for feebly interacting particles via signatures of scattering in the detector target. The first phase of the experiment has been carried out during the ongoing LHC Run 3, and the first data of the LHC Run3 commissioning period are being processed and analyzed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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7 pages, 717 KiB  
Communication
Using the Two-Phase Emission Detector RED-100 at NPP to Study Coherent Elastic Neutrinos Scattering off Nuclei
by RED-100 Collaboration
Physics 2023, 5(2), 492-498; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020034 - 20 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1167
Abstract
The two-phase emission detector RED-100 with 130 kg of liquid xenon as a working medium has been exhibited at a distance of 19 m from the core of the VVER-1000/320 nuclear power reactor at the fourth power unit of the Kalinin Nuclear Plant [...] Read more.
The two-phase emission detector RED-100 with 130 kg of liquid xenon as a working medium has been exhibited at a distance of 19 m from the core of the VVER-1000/320 nuclear power reactor at the fourth power unit of the Kalinin Nuclear Plant Power in 2021–2022. Due to the high sensitivity of the detector for weak ionization signals (down to single electrons), the detector has been used to search for the elastic coherent scattering of reactor electron antineutrinos off xenon nuclei. However, the observation of ~30 kHz single-electron noise did not quite allow for an effective selection of the useful events. The next experiment with the RED-100 detector is considered to be arranged with 62 kg of liquid argon as a working medium. The advantages of this approach are discussed in this paper. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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9 pages, 2283 KiB  
Communication
Machine Learning Approach for Event Position Reconstruction in the DEAP-3600 Dark Matter Search Experiment
by DEAP Collaboration
Physics 2023, 5(2), 483-491; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020033 - 19 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1495
Abstract
In addition to classical analytical data processing methods, machine learning methods are widely used for data analysis in elementary particle physics. Most often, such techniques are used to identify a particular class of events (the classification problem) or to predict a certain event [...] Read more.
In addition to classical analytical data processing methods, machine learning methods are widely used for data analysis in elementary particle physics. Most often, such techniques are used to identify a particular class of events (the classification problem) or to predict a certain event parameter (the regression problem). Here, we present the result of using a machine learning model to solve the regression problem of event position reconstruction in the DEAP-3600 dark matter search detector. A neural network was used as a machine learning model. Improving the position resolution will improve the reduction in background events, while increasing the signal acceptance for weakly interacting massive particles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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13 pages, 1816 KiB  
Article
Genetic Algorithm for Determination of the Event Collision Time and Particle Identification by Time-of-Flight at NICA SPD
by Semyon Yurchenko and Mikhail Zhabitsky
Physics 2023, 5(2), 423-435; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020030 - 17 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1137
Abstract
Particle identification is an important feature of the future SPD (Spin Physics Detector) experiment at the NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) collider. In particular, the identification of particles with momenta up to a few GeV/c (with c the speed of light) [...] Read more.
Particle identification is an important feature of the future SPD (Spin Physics Detector) experiment at the NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) collider. In particular, the identification of particles with momenta up to a few GeV/c (with c the speed of light) by their time-of-flight facilitates the reconstruction of events of interest. The high time resolution of modern TOF (Time-Of-Flight) detectors demands the need to obtain the event collision time, t0, with comparable accuracy. While the determination of the collision time is feasible through the use of TOF signals supplemented by track reconstruction, it proves to be computationally expensive. In the presented study, a dedicated Genetic Algorithm is developed as a fast and accurate method to determine the proton–proton collision time by the measurements of the TOF detector at the SPD experiment. By using this reliable method for the t0 determination we compare different approaches for the particle identification procedure based on TOF signals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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7 pages, 718 KiB  
Communication
Feasibility Study of Hypernucleus Production at NICA/MPD
by Vadim Kolesnikov, Viktar Kireyeu, Alexander Mudrokh, Veronika Vasendina and Alexander Zinchenko
Physics 2023, 5(2), 391-397; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020028 - 11 Apr 2023
Viewed by 989
Abstract
The NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) project at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Dubna, Russia) is aimed at the construction of a new accelerator complex for heavy ions and polarized particles. Heavy-ion collisions at NICA are planned to be studied in [...] Read more.
The NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) project at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Dubna, Russia) is aimed at the construction of a new accelerator complex for heavy ions and polarized particles. Heavy-ion collisions at NICA are planned to be studied in the region of the highest net-baryon density, which favors the formation of bound nuclear systems with strangeness hypernuclei. The multipurpose detector (MPD) at NICA is designed to reconstruct interactions of relativistic nuclei in a high-multiplicity environment. In this paper, we report the feasibility study results for the reconstruction of Λ3H, Λ4H and Λ4He in Bi+Bi collisions at the nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy, sNN= 9.2 GeV. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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10 pages, 393 KiB  
Communication
Clustering in Oxygen Nuclei and Spectator Fragments in 16O–16O Collisions at the LHC
by Aleksandr Svetlichnyi, Savva Savenkov, Roman Nepeivoda and Igor Pshenichnov
Physics 2023, 5(2), 381-390; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020027 - 04 Apr 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1277
Abstract
A new version of the Abrasion–Ablation Monte Carlo for Colliders model with the Minimum Spanning Tree clusterization algorithm (AAMCC-MST) is used to simulate 16O–16O collisions at the LHC, accounting for the presence of alpha-clustered states in 16O. The yields [...] Read more.
A new version of the Abrasion–Ablation Monte Carlo for Colliders model with the Minimum Spanning Tree clusterization algorithm (AAMCC-MST) is used to simulate 16O–16O collisions at the LHC, accounting for the presence of alpha-clustered states in 16O. The yields of He, Li, Be, B, C and N spectator nuclei are calculated taking into account the pre-equilibrium clusterization of spectator matter and short-range correlations (SRC) between nucleons in 16O. The impact of α-clustering and SRC on the production of spectator neutrons and deuterons is investigated. The results on the production of spectator nucleons and fragments can help in evaluating the performance of Zero Degree Calorimeters in future studies of 16O–16O collisions at the LHC. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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Review

Jump to: Research

10 pages, 478 KiB  
Review
Fractal Entropy of Nuclear Medium Probed by KS0 Mesons Produced in AuAu Collisions at RHIC
by Mikhail Tokarev and Imrich Zborovský
Physics 2023, 5(2), 537-546; https://doi.org/10.3390/physics5020038 - 09 May 2023
Viewed by 1133
Abstract
In this paper, we review our findings concerning fractal entropy of microscopic configurations corresponding to the production of KS0 mesons in AuAu collisions in the z-scaling approach. The entropy is expressed via structural and fragmentation fractal dimensions, and model parameter [...] Read more.
In this paper, we review our findings concerning fractal entropy of microscopic configurations corresponding to the production of KS0 mesons in AuAu collisions in the z-scaling approach. The entropy is expressed via structural and fragmentation fractal dimensions, and model parameter cAuAu is interpreted as a specific heat of produced medium. These parameters are related to the respective momentum fractions of the colliding nuclei, the momentum fractions of the scattered constituents that fragment into the produced hadrons, and the multiplicity density of negative particles in the central interaction region. The dependence of the entropy on the collision energy over the range of 7.7–200 GeV for most central and most peripheral events is studied as a function of the transverse momentum of the produced KS0 mesons. A non-trivial dependence of the entropy on the collision energy with decreasing transverse momentum is found. This reflects the irregularity of the behavior of the specific heat, cAuAu, and can point to a manifestation of phase transition in nuclear matter. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Heavy Ions to Astroparticle Physics)
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