Research on Relativistic Heavy and Light Ion Physics. Experiments at the

Accelerator Complex Nuclotron/NICA at JINR and CERN SPS

Participating countries and international organizations:
Armenia, Bulgaria, CERN, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, India, Mongolia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Switzerland, USA, Uzbekistan. 

Issues addressed and main goals of research:

Study of new phenomena in multiple particle productions associated with the manifestation of the quark and gluon degrees of freedom in the interaction of relativistic nuclei. Study of nucleon and nuclear interactions at the VBLHEP accelerator complex, CERN SPS. Energy scan of interactions of nuclei at 20-158 GeV/nucleon energies and the study of their dependence on the atomic number of nuclei. To search for the critical point on the phase diagram of nuclear matter at the NA61(SPS, CERN). Study of hadron production in hadron-nucleus interactions. Use of the obtained data for the precision calculations of neutrino spectra and fluxes in the accelerator experiments to study the neutrino oscillations. Investigation of nucleon clustering and the contribution of unstable nuclear-molecular States to the dissociation of light stable and radioactive isotopes, as well as the properties of rarefied baryonic matter in the dissociation of heavy nuclei. Experimental and theoretical study of deep subthreshold, cumulative processes, the formation of hadrons and antimatter in the transition energy region. Investigation of processes in the region of large P_T (P_T ≥ 1 GeV/c) in non-cumulative and cumulative kinematic regions at SPIN and FODS setups. Study of the behavior of elementary particles, nucleon resonances and nucleon fluctuations in nuclear matter on the SCAN spectrometer. Preparation of proposals of the experiments at the VBLHEP accelerator complex on the Nuclotron extracted beams and NICA Collider. Study of the short-range nucleon-nucleon correlations and the cluster structure of the nuclei using the beams of ions, polarized protons and deuterons at the internal target of the Nuclotron in the framework of the SCAN-3project. 

Expected major results in the current year:

• Investigation of new phenomena in multiple particle productions associated with the manifestation of the quark and gluon degrees of freedom.

• Preparation and performance of the experiments on the internal and extracted Nuclotron beams.

• SHINE data analysis (SPS, CERN). Study of hadron production in hadron-nucleus interactions. Use of the obtained data for the precision calculation of neutrino spectra and fluxes in the accelerator experiments to study the neutrino oscillations. Modernization of the TOF system. Configuration and testing of the three-arms SCAN magnetic spectrometer. Modernization of electronics for data taken. Analysis of experimental data. 

• Analysis of the experimental data on the processes of the multiple emission of intermediate mass fragments on the beams of relativistic light ions using a 4-π PHASE-3 setup for the registration of nuclear fragments. Performing data analysis to determine the mechanism of multifragmentation and to obtain new information about the nuclear phase transitions "liquid-fog" and "liquid-gas". Investigation of properties of hot nuclei formed in the collisions of light relativistic ions with heavy targets. Production of the detector system for the registration of the decay of hypernuclei.

• Verification of the consequences of the principles of self-similarity and weakening of correlations in the formation of multiple particles.

• Upgrade of the SCAN setup. Analysis of the experimental data on the behavior of nucleon resonances and nucleon fluctuations in nuclei, on the search and study of properties of the bound state-meson in nuclear matter, study of np and pp correlations. Modernization of the Internal target of the Nuclotron.

• Search and study of the Hoyle state and more complex nuclear-molecular States in the dissociation of light nuclei. Analysis of the isotopic composition of the fragmentation of heavy nuclei. Use of automated microscopes, as well as improvement of the NE technology.

• Updating the Marusya installation for conducting the experimental studies with the extracted Nuclotron beams. Investigation of A-dependences of rare subthreshold and cumulative processes of the formation of pions, kaons and antiprotons depending on the type and energy of the incoming nuclei, the momentum and angle of the detected particles. Carrying out correlation experiments with registration of groups of particles in the final state, one of which is cumulative.

• Collection, processing and digitization of the film information obtained using bubble chambers and in electronic experiments with fixed targets under the conditions of registration of multiple birth of particles in the energy range of 1-300 GeV.

• Use of heavy and light ions for applied research.

• Analysis of the experimental data obtained in the PHENIX experiment.

• Processing of the experimental data from 5-9 Runs at the PHENIX setup. Participation in the formation of the program for e-RHIC.

• Preparation of a project to study spin asymmetries at the LHEP accelerator complex.

• Collection of new experimental data in pA-and AA-interactions in the region of large р_Т (р_Т  ≥ 1 GeV/c)  at SPIN and FODS facilities, data processing and publication of results

 Collaboration