Fundamental research let to the formulation of the theory of Quantum Chromo-Dynamics (QCD). QCD describes how the strong interaction mediates the exchange of particles. Via the experiments of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Lab and of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN one gets access to the relevant energy scales of the fundamental particles, the quarks and gluons, which are governed by QCD. The program of colliding heavy nuclei at ultra-relativistic speeds allows to gain insight on extreme matter under high temperatures and high pressures. This pushes humanities understanding of the constituents of the nuclei. In consequence this has a broad connection to a variety of fields, including astrophysics, neutrino physics and nuclear physics. This allows in consequence to get insights on the fundamental questions: how did the creation of matter in our universe happen after the big bang? how are the heavy nuclei composed and shaped? how do the high energy cosmic rays interact with our atmosphere and how does matter in compact stars behave? In particular this project aimed on providing new insights of extreme matter subject to high temperatures or high pressures. For the RHIC scan of the QCD phase diagram the project newly assessed various unstable first order phase transitions. With the heavy-ion theory group and a junior faculty ALICE experimentalist we studied the impact of the plasma on charm jets: The results we find are highly exciting as we predict a significant enhancement in jet chemistry for charm and anti-charm pair creation. This is a strong motivation for future high luminosity heavy-ion runs at the LHC.
