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arXiv · 2504.04688

Identifying $α$-cluster configurations in $^{20}$Ne via ultracentral Ne+Ne Collisions

Pei Li·Bo Zhou·Guo-Liang Ma
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Abstract

The initial-state geometry in relativistic heavy-ion collisions provides a novel probe to nuclear cluster structure. For $^{20}$Ne, a novel approach is proposed to distinguish between the cluster configurations (5$α$ versus $α+ ^{16}$O) in order to gain insight into nuclear structure transitions governed by many-body quantum correlations. Through analytical calculations with the microscopic Brink model and event-by-event simulations using the hydrodynamic framework, we establish the normalized symmetric cumulant NSC (3, 2) and the Pearson coefficient $ρ_2 (v_{2}^{2},\ δ[p_{\mathrm{T}}])$ as quantitative discriminators to reveal enhanced cluster degrees of freedom in the ground state of $^{20}$Ne. The ultracentral Ne+Ne collisions at the LHC can experimentally identify these two competing configurations via these flow correlation observables, opening a new paradigm for probing clustering in light nuclei.

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Pei Li, Bo Zhou, Guo-Liang Ma. 2026-01-27. Identifying $α$-cluster configurations in $^{20}$Ne via ultracentral Ne+Ne Collisions. https://doi.org/10.1103/tffz-8q1m

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