Project description
Insight into quantum behaviour
When atomic nuclei collide at near-light speed inside powerful accelerators, they create a short-lived but extraordinary state of matter called the quark-gluon plasma. This plasma is hotter than the sun and behaves like a tiny whirlpool of energy where quantum effects emerge on a massive scale. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the SPINNERET project will investigate a fundamental quantum property of these particles inside this swirling plasma, namely how they align their spins under extreme conditions. By studying how spin interacts with motion and heat in systems, researchers hope to understand how the universe’s most extreme matter evolves and stabilises.
Objective
This project addresses non-equilibrium effects and equilibration in relativistic plasmas focusing on spin physics. I will use techniques from quantum-relativistic statistical mechanics, quantum field theory, and many-body theory to answer some of the most pressing questions concerning spin polarization in the quark-gluon plasma (QGP).
The QGP is created in laboratories such as the “Large Hadron Collider” and the “Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider” by smashing heavy ions at relativistic speed. It is a state of matter well described by relativistic hydrodynamics where quarks and gluons are no longer confined inside nuclei, and it is the hottest and least viscous fluid in nature. Due to the initial orbital angular momentum, non-central collisions create a rotating QGP, which is the most vortical fluid ever observed. Vorticity couples to the spin of particles, aligning it with the total angular momentum and producing a spin polarization that is measured experimentally. This effect connects the macroscopic motion of the plasma to a microscopic and entirely quantum property such as spin. Recently, another source of polarization has been found in the “thermal shear flow”, which is only present in out-of-equilibrium fluids. Indeed, only the thermal vorticity can be present in equilibrium, and the thermal shear is zero.
Studying spin in out-of-equilibrium systems requires tackling some important theoretical questions. The coupling of spin to shear is surprising compared to its coupling to vorticity: how does it happen? The results of any spin calculation depend on the phenomenological definition of a spin density of the fluid: can such a density be fixed microscopically? Finally, any out-of-equilibrium state should relax to equilibrium: how does the relaxation to a vortical equilibrium state happen for a relativistic plasma? These questions will be addressed in my project, SPINNERET.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences physical sciences theoretical physics particle physics particle accelerator
- natural sciences physical sciences relativistic mechanics
- natural sciences physical sciences theoretical physics particle physics gluons
- natural sciences physical sciences theoretical physics particle physics quarks
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01
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75794 Paris
France
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