The chromo-electromagnetic field is produced due to the motion of partons in a quark-gluon plasma created by relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The fluctuations in the produced chromo-electromagnetic field are important, since they cause heavy quarks to gain energy in the low velocity limit. We study the effect of such fluctuations on heavy quark diffusion in quark-gluon plasma within the framework of Langevin dynamics under the background matter described by the ($3+1$)-dimensional relativistic viscous hydrodynamics. Theoretical calculations of the nuclear modification factor ($R_{AA}$) of heavy mesons ($D$ and $B$ mesons), with the effect of these fluctuations, are compared with experimental measurements in $Au-Au$ collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 200$ GeV by the STAR experiment at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and $Pb-Pb$ collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 2.76$ and $5.02$ TeV by the ALICE and CMS experiments at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). We find a significant effect of these fluctuations in describing the the measured $R_{AA}$ of $D$ and $B$ mesons in both RHIC and LHC energies.
A snapshot of the results for heavy-flavour observables in heavy-ion (AA) collisions at RHIC and LHC obtained with our transport calculations is displayed. The initial charm and beauty production is simulated through pQCD tools (POWHEG+PYTHIA) and is validated through the comparison with data from pp collisions. The propagation of c and b quarks in the medium formed in heavy-ion collisions is studied through a transport setup based on the relativistic Langevin equation. With respect to past works we perform a more systematic study, providing results with different choices of transport coeffici…
We derive bounds on the electric and chromo-electric dipole moments of the charm quark. The second one turns out to be particularly strong, and we quantify its impact on models that allow for a sizeable flavour violation in the up quark sector, like flavour alignment and Generic U(2)^3. In particular we show how the bounds coming from the charm and up CEDMs constrain the size of new physics contributions to direct flavour violation in D decays. We also specialize our analysis to the cases of Supersymmetry with split families and composite Higgs models. The results exposed in this paper motivat…
The propagation of the heavy quarks produced in relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC and LHC is studied within the framework of Langevin dynamics in the background of an expanding deconfined medium described by ideal and viscous hydrodynamics. The transport coefficients entering into the relativistic Langevin equation are evaluated by matching the hard-thermal-loop result for soft collisions with a perturbative QCD calculation for hard scatterings. The heavy-quark spectra thus obtained are employed to compute the differential cross sections, the nuclear modification factors R_AA and…
We analyse exotic tetraquark mesons - bound states formed by two quarks and two antiquarks - for the specific case of four different quark flavours within the framework of a well-defined limit of quantum chromodynamics characterized by the correlated growth without bound of the number of colour degrees of freedom and approach to zero of the coupling constant of the strong interactions. On the one hand, the assumption that the tetraquarks of the kind defined above show up, as poles in the amplitudes for the scattering of two ordinary mesons with flavour quantum numbers that match those of these…
We derive a strong bound on the chromo-electric dipole moment of the charm quark, and we quantify its impact on models that allow for a sizeable flavour violation in the up quark sector. In particular we show how the constraints coming from the charm and up CEDMs limit the size of new physics contributions to direct flavour violation in D meson decays. We also specialize our analysis to the cases of split-families Supersymmetry and composite Higgs models. The results we expose motivate an increase in experimental sensitivity to fundamental hadronic dipoles, and a further exploration of the SM …
The anomalous dimensions of the general flavour non-singlet quark bilinear currents ψγ^{[μ_1} ... γ^{μ_n]} ψare computed at three loops in quantum chromodynamics in the minimal subtraction scheme. The dimension of the tensor current emerges for the case n = 2 and the anomalous dimension for the general flavour singlet current is also discussed.
Flavour-exotic tetraquark mesons, by definition bound states of two quarks and two antiquarks of four mutually different quark flavours, are, for given Lorentz features, subject to two incompatible constraints: On the one hand, within quantum chromodynamics a formation of compact tetraquark states is most easily envisaged by merging two colour-antisymmetric two-quark clusters, a diquark and an antidiquark. This path, however, leads to merely a single tetraquark state of chosen Lorentz characteristics. On the other hand, in the limit of the number of colour degrees of freedom growing beyond bou…
Flavour- and CP-violating electromagnetic or chromomagnetic dipole operators in the quark sector are generated in a large class of new physics models and are strongly constrained by measurements of the neutron electric dipole moment and observables sensitive to flavour-changing neutral currents, such as the $B\to X_sγ$ branching ratio and $ε'/ε$. After a model-independent discussion of the relevant constraints, we analyze these effects in models with partial compositeness, where the quarks get their masses by mixing with vector-like composite fermions. These scenarios can be seen as the low-en…
A multi-step setup for heavy-flavour studies in high-energy nucleus-nucleus (AA) collisions --- addressing within a comprehensive framework the initial Q-Qbar production, the propagation in the hot medium until decoupling and the final hadronization and decays --- is presented. The initial hard production of Q-Qbar pairs is simulated using the POWHEG pQCD event generator, interfaced with the PYTHIA parton shower. Outcomes of the calculations are compared to experimental data in pp collisions and are used as a validated benchmark for the study of medium effects. In the AA case, the propagation …
Heavy quarks (charm and beauty) are produced early in the nucleus-nucleus collisions, and heavy flavor survives throughout the later stages. Measurements of heavy-flavor quarks thus provide us with means to understand the properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma, a hot and dense state of matter created in heavy-ion collisions. Production of heavy-flavor in small collision systems, on the other hand, can be used to test Quantum-chromodynamics models. After a successful completion of the Run-I data taking period, the increased luminosity from the LHC and an upgraded ALICE detector system in the Run-…
Quantum Chromodynamics with a relatively large number of fundamentally charged quark flavours in the chiral limit is considered. A self-consistent solution of the quark, gluon and ghost propagator Dyson-Schwinger equations in Landau gauge exhibits a phase transition. Above the critical number of fermion flavours the non-perturbative running coupling develops a plateau over a wide momentum range, and the propagators follow a power law behaviour for these momenta. Hereby, the critical number of quark flavours depends crucially on the beyond-tree-level tensor structures of the quark-gluon vertex.
The presence of thermal gluons reduces the stimulated gluon emission off a heavy quark propagating in the quark-gluon plasma (QGP) while absorption causes reduction of the radiative energy loss. On the other hand, the chromo-electromagnetic field fluctuations present in the QGP lead to collisional energy gain of the heavy quark. The net effect of the thermal gluon absorption and field fluctuations is a reduction of the total energy loss of the heavy quark, prominent at the lower momenta. We consider both kind of the energy gains along with the usual losses, and compute the nuclear modification…
The calculations for the production of heavy quarks in deeply inelastic scattering (DIS) can be seen as an illustrative example in the framework of perturbative Quantum Chromo Dynamics (pQCD). In this thesis, I give an overview of all steps that are required for this computation. First, I give an introduction to the fundamental theoretical basics. Next, I present the calculation of the matrix elements which are a main part of the work. The next-to-leading order (NLO) pQCD corrections for polarized DIS have been obtained here for the first time. Then, I discuss two different phase space decompo…
We revisit the anomalous chromomagnetic dipole moment in the Standard Model and show that its triple gluon vertex contribution, with the on-shell gluon ($q^2=0$), generates an infrared divergent pole. Consequently, the chromomagnetic dipole should not be perturbatively evaluated at $q^2=0$. Focusing on this top quark anomaly, denoted as $\hatμ_t(q^2)$, we compute it with the off-shell gluon with a large momentum transfer, just as the $α_s(m_Z^2)$ convention scale, for both spacelike $q^2=-m_Z^2$ and timelike $q^2=m_Z^2$ cases. We found that $\hatμ_t(-m_Z^2)$ $=$ $-0.0224$ $-0.000925i$ and $\ha…
We study the transverse momentum, $p_T$, broadening of charm and beauty quarks in the early stage of high energy nuclear collisions. We aim to compare the diffusion in the evolving Glasma fields with that of a standard, Markovian-Brownian motion in a thermalized medium with the same energy density of the Glasma fields. The Brownian motion is studied via Langevin equations with diffusion coefficients computed within perturbative Quantum Chromodynamics. We find that for small values of the saturation scale, $Q_s$, the average $p_T$ broadening in the two motions is comparable, that suggests that …
I briefly review the status and recent progress in the theoretical understanding of non-leptonic decays of beauty and charm hadrons. Focusing on a personal selection of topics, this covers perturbative calculations in quantum chromodynamics, analyses using flavour symmetries of strong interactions, and the modelling of the relevant hadronic input functions.
Scrutinizing the scattering of ordinary mesons in the limiting case of the number of colour degrees of freedom $N_{\rm c}$ of quantum chromodynamics approaching infinity, we formulate Feynman-diagram selection criteria and from these deduce rigorous self-consistency conditions for the manifestation of a tetraquark, a two-quark-two-antiquark bound state, as a pole in the corresponding amplitudes. Our constraints bear rather far-reaching consequences: In particular, all flavour-exotic tetraquarks, composed of four (anti)quarks of disparate flavour, must come in, at least, two variants differing …
This report reviews the study of open heavy-flavour and quarkonium production in high-energy hadronic collisions, as tools to investigate fundamental aspects of Quantum Chromodynamics, from the proton and nucleus structure at high energy to deconfinement and the properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma. Emphasis is given to the lessons learnt from LHC Run 1 results, which are reviewed in a global picture with the results from SPS and RHIC at lower energies, as well as to the questions to be addressed in the future. The report covers heavy flavour and quarkonium production in proton-proton, proton-…
The average transverse momentum transfer per unit path length to a fast parton scattering elastically in a perturbative quark-gluon plasma is related to the radiative energy loss of the parton. We first calculate the momentum transfer coefficient $\hat q$ in terms of a classical Langevin problem and then define it quantum-mechanically through scattering matrix element. After treating the well known case of a quark-gluon plasma in equilibrium we consider an off-equilibrium unstable plasma. As a specific example, we treat the two-stream plasma with unstable modes of longitudinal chromoelectric f…
Strong magnetic fields impact quantum-chromodynamics (QCD) properties in several situations; examples include the early universe, magnetars, and heavy-ion collisions. These examples share a common trait: time evolution. A prominent QCD property impacted by a strong magnetic field is the quark condensate, an approximate order parameter of the QCD transition between a high-temperature quark-gluon phase and a low-temperature hadronic phase. We use the linear sigma model with quarks to address the quark condensate time evolution under a strong magnetic field. We use the closed time path formalism …
The critical end-point (CEP) and critical behaviour in its vicinity, has been explored in the two flavour effective chiral models with and without the presence of effective Polyakov loop potential.The tricritical point (TCP) in the massless chiral limit has been located on the phase diagram in the μandT plane for the Polyakov loop extended Quark Meson Model (PQM) and pure Quark Meson (QM) model which become effective Quantum-chromodynamics (QCD) like models due to the proper accounting of fermionic vacuum loop contribution in the effective potential.The proximity of the TCP to the QCD critical…
Considering quantum chromodynamics in the consistent limit of simultaneous correlated increase of the number of colours, $N_{\rm c}$, beyond bounds and decrease of the strong coupling to zero allows for solid statements about qualitative features of the class of "truly exotic" tetraquark mesons carrying four mutually distinct quark flavours. Consistency criteria extracted from correlation functions for two-ordinary-meson scattering suggest the existence of more than one such tetraquarks, at least, of two tetraquarks of identical quark-flavour content and large-$N_{\rm c}$ behaviour of the tota…
The approximate symmetries of Quantum ChromoDynamics in the infinite heavy quark ($Q=c,b$) mass limit ($m_Q \to \infty$) and in the chiral limit for the light quarks ($m_q \to 0,\;q=\,u,\,d,\,s$) can be used together to build up an effective chiral lagrangian for heavy and light mesons describing strong interactions among effective meson fields as well as their couplings to electromagnetic and weak currents, including the relevant symmetry breaking terms. The effective theory includes heavy ($Q \bar q$) mesons of both negative and positive parity, light pseudoscalars, as well as light vector m…
We calculate the strong decays of hybrid mesons to conventional mesons for all the lowest lying J^PC hybrids of flavour uu, dd, ss, cc and bb. A decay operator developed from the heavy quark expansion of quantum chromodynamics is employed. We show that the selection rule that hybrid mesons do not decay to identical S-wave mesons, found in other models, is preserved. We predict decays of charmonium hybrids, discuss decays of J^PC=1^-+ exotic isovector hybrids of various masses, and interpret the π(1800) as a hybrid meson.
We present the first full analytic evaluation of the scattering amplitude for the process $q {\bar q} \to Q {\bar Q}$ up-to two loops in Quantum Chromodynamics, for a massless $(q)$ and a massive $(Q)$ quark flavour. The interference terms of the one- and two-loop amplitudes with the Born amplitude, decomposed in terms of gauge invariant form factors depending on the colour and flavour structure, are analytically calculated by keeping complete dependence on the squared center-of-mass energy, the squared momentum transfer, and the heavy-quark mass. The results are expressed as Laurent series ar…
This work studies collinearly factorizable nuclear parton distribution functions (nPDFs) in perturbative Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) at next-to-leading order in the light of hadron-nucleus collision data which have not been included in nPDF analyses previously. The aim is at setting new constraints on the nuclear modifications of the gluon distribution and on the flavour separation of quark nuclear modifications. The introductory part provides an outline of the theoretical framework of QCD collinear factorization and the used statistical methods and relates the work presented here to other si…
We investigate the quark backreaction on the Polyakov loop and its impact on the thermodynamics of quantum chromodynamics. The dynamics of the gluons generating the Polyakov-loop potential is altered by the presence of dynamical quarks. However, this backreaction of the quarks has not yet been taken into account in Polyakov-loop extended model studies. In the present work, we show within a 2+1 flavour Polyakov-quark-meson model that a quark-improved Polyakov-loop potential leads to a smoother transition between the low-temperature hadronic phase and the high-temperature quark-gluon plasma phas…
We review a semi-classical transport theory for non-Abelian plasmas based on a classical picture of coloured point particles. Within this formalism, kinetic equations for the mean particle distribution, the mean fields and their fluctuations are obtained using an ensemble-average in phase space. The framework permits the integrating-out of fluctuations in a systematic manner. This leads to the derivation of collision integrals, noise sources and fluctuation-induced currents for the effective transport equations of QCD. Consistency with the non-Abelian gauge symmetry is established, and systema…
Heavy-ion collisions provide a unique opportunity to study the nature of X(3872) compared with electron-positron and proton-proton (antiproton) collisions. We investigate the centrality and momentum dependence of X(3872) in heavy-ion collisions via the Langevin equation and instant coalescence model (LICM). When X(3872) is treated as a compact tetraquark state, the tetraquarks are produced via the coalescence of heavy and light quarks near the quantum chromodynamic (QCD) phase transition due to the restoration of the heavy quark potential at $T\rightarrow T_c$. In the molecular scenario, loose…
Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Physics Department（慕尼黑工业大学）；Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Genova and INFN, Sezione di Genova（热那亚大学物理系和意大利国家核物理研究所热那亚分部）；Institut de Physique Théorique, Paris Saclay University, CNRS, CEA（巴黎萨克雷大学理论物理研究所）
Non-perturbative charm and bottom quark-pair production is investigated in the early stage of heavy ion collisions. Following our earlier works, the time-dependent study is based on a kinetic description of fermion-pair production in strong non-Abelian fields. We introduce time-dependent chromo-electric external field with a pulse-like time evolution, which simulates the overlap of two colliding heavy ions. The calculations is performed in a SU(2) color model with finite current quark masses. Yields of heavy quark-pairs are compared to the ones of light and strange quark-pairs. We show that th…
The analysis of two-ordinary-meson scattering amplitudes in the limit of a large number $N_{\rm c}$ of the colour degrees of freedom of quantum chromodynamics, with suitably decreasing strong coupling and all quarks transforming according to the gauge group's fundamental representation, enables us to establish a set of rigorous consistency conditions for the emergence of a tetraquark (i.e., a bound state of two quarks and two antiquarks) as a pole in these amplitudes. For genuinely flavour-exotic tetraquarks, these constraints require the existence of two tetraquark states distinguishable by t…
We embark on systematic explorations of the behaviour of tetraquark mesons (colour-singlet bound states of two quarks and two antiquarks) in the (idealized) limit of a large number $N_c$ of colour degrees of freedom of quantum chromodynamics. Considering the scattering of two ordinary mesons into two ordinary mesons, we start off with formulating a set of selection criteria that should enable us to unambiguously single out precisely those contributions to all encountered scattering amplitudes that potentially will develop tetraquark poles. Assuming that tetraquark mesons do exist and, if so, e…
Thermalization and collective flow of charm (c) and bottom (b) quarks in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions are evaluated based on elastic parton rescattering in an expanding quark-gluon plasma (QGP). We show that resonant interactions in a strongly interacting QGP (sQGP), as well as the effects of parton coalescence, can play an essential role in the interpretation of recent data from the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider (RHIC), and thus illuminate the nature of the sQGP and its hadronization. Our main assumption, motivated by recent findings in lattice computations of Quantum Chromodynam…
This review summarises the main results on the production of single vector bosons in the Standard Model, both inclusively and in association with light and heavy flavour jets, at the Large Hadron Collider in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV. The general purpose detectors at this collider, ATLAS and CMS, each recorded an integrated luminosity of $\approx 40\,{\rm pb^{-1}}$ and $5\,{\rm fb^{-1}}$ in the years 2010 and 2011, respectively. The corresponding data offer the unique possibility to precisely study the properties of the production of heavy vector bosons in a …
We report the first lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD) study of deuteron($np$)-like dibaryons with heavy quark flavours. These include particles with following dibaryon structures and valence quark contents: $Σ_cΞ_{cc} (uucucc)$, $Ω_cΩ_{cc} (sscscc)$, $Σ_bΞ_{bb} (uububb)$, $Ω_bΩ_{bb} (ssbsbb)$ and $Ω_{ccb}Ω_{cbb} (ccbcbb)$, and with spin ($J$)-parity ($P$), $J^{P} \equiv 1^{+}$. Using a state-of-the art lattice QCD calculation, after controlling relevant systematic errors, we unambiguously find that the ground state masses of dibaryons $Ω_cΩ_{cc} (sscscc)$, $Ω_bΩ_{bb} (ssbsbb)$ and $Ω_{ccb}Ω…
Spin relaxation of heavy quarks from momentum diffusion in the quark-gluon plasma
Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar（印度理工学院甘地纳加尔分校）；Tata Institute of Fundamental Research（塔塔基础研究所）；National Institute of Science Education and Research（国家科学教育与研究学院）
