Abstract
A global analysis of relativistic heavy-ion collisions is proposed which entails a measurement of the momentum of all emitted particles. The resultant thrust is a measure of final-state momentum flow and provides information on the global dynamics governing the collisions. This proposal is tested with a relativistic hydrodynamic model for collisions of equal-mass nuclei. The angle at which the thrust, or maximal directed momentum flow, occurs is O° CM for grazing collisions and increases monotonically to 90° CM for central collisions. Experimental observation of this dramatic behaviour would imply a mean free path much less than the size of the colliding nuclei.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 33-37 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Physics Letters B |
| Volume | 106 |
| Issue number | 1-2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Oct 29 1981 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We are grateful to A.J. Sierk and H. St6cker for discussions and to S. Bahev for help in editing the movie. This work was supported by the United States Department of Energy.