The proceedings reflect the recent experimental and theoretical progress in pion nuclear physics in topics like pionic atoms, pion absorption, charge exchange, (π, 2π), and others involving pions in nuclei using different probes, as electron photons or heavy ions. Related topics on chiral symmetry, low energy πN and (γ, π⁰) and quark degrees of freedom are also addressed.
This book attempts to cover the fascinating field of physics of relativistic heavy ions, mainly from the experimentalist's point of view. After the introductory chapter on quantum chromodynamics, basic properties of atomic nuclei, sources of relativistic nuclei, and typical detector set-ups are described in three subsequent chapters. Experimental facts on collisions of relativistic heavy ions are systematically presented in 15 consecutive chapters, starting from the simplest features like cross sections, multiplicities, and spectra of secondary particles and going to more involved characteristics like correlations, various relatively rare processes, and newly discovered features: collective flow, high pT suppression and jet quenching. Some entirely new topics are included, such as the difference between neutron and proton radii in nuclei, heavy hypernuclei, and electromagnetic effects on secondary particle spectra.Phenomenological approaches and related simple models are discussed in parallel with the presentation of experimental data. Near the end of the book, recent ideas about the new state of matter created in collisions of ultrarelativistic nuclei are discussed. In the final chapter, some predictions are given for nuclear collisions in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), now in construction at the site of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva. Finally, the appendix gives us basic notions of relativistic kinematics, and lists the main international conferences related to this field. A concise reference book on physics of relativistic heavy ions, it shows the present status of this field.
An introduction to the main ideas used in the physics of ultra-realistic heavy-ion collisions, this book covers topics such as hot and dense matter and the formation of the quark-gluon plasma in present and future heavy-ion experiments
Introduction to Relativistic Heavy Ion Collisions László P. Csernai University of Bergen, Norway Written for postgraduates and advanced undergraduates in physics, this clear and concise work covers a wide range of subjects from intermediate to ultra-relativistic energies, thus providing an introductory overview of heavy ion physics. The reader is introduced to essential principles in heavy ion physics through a variety of questions, with answers, of varying difficulty. This timely text is based on a series of well received lectures given by Professor L. Csernai at the University of Minnesota, and the University of Bergen, where the author is based.
The QNP series of international conferences on Quarks and Nuclear Physics is by now a well established and highly respected forum where the most recent developments in the field are discussed and communicated. QNP 2006 is the forth edition of this biennial meeting. Selected and refereed original contributions of QNP 2006 have been published in The European Physical Journal A - Hadrons and Nuclei (EPJ A), while the present proceedings book, in addition to reprinting the articles published in EPJ A, further includes all other contributions selected and accepted by the organizing committee for publication and archiving.
These proceedings discuss the quantal system with many particles mainly from the theoretical point of view. The topics discussed include the relativistic nuclear many-body problem, perspective in hadron structure, mean-field and semiclassical methods, thermal theories, symmetries and group theoretical methods, and density functional theories.
