Disentangling nuclear structure through multiparticle azimuthal correlations in high-energy isobar collisions

Abstract

Event-by-event fluctuations in the amplitudes of flow harmonics offer a novel approach to probing the initial-state characteristics in heavy-ion collisions. In this study, we conduct a systematic investigation of correlations among various flow harmonics utilizing multiparticle cumulants in $^{96}$Ru+$^{96}$Ru and $^{96}$Zr+$^{96}$Zr collisions at $\sqrtsnn =$ 200 GeV within the framework of a multiphase transport model. Correlated nuclear density distributions specific to the isobar systems are incorporated to evaluate the sensitivity of selected observables to variations in nuclear deformation and neutron skin thickness. The analysis reveals that multiparticle azimuthal correlations are responsive to these nuclear structure features, predominantly in the most central collision events. Furthermore, the examined correlations exhibit shallow dependence on the assumed shear viscosity values. These findings provide a quantitative evaluation of the extent to which multiparticle flow observables can discern nuclear structure effects in isobar collisions and offer valuable guidance for future detailed dynamical investigations and experimental measurements.

Figures (6)

• Figure 1: Asymmetric cumulant ${\rm asc}_{nm,n+m}\{3\}$ for $n,m=2,2$ and $2,3$ representing the influence of nuclear structures as a function of $N_{\rm{part}}$ in 0.2 $< p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/$c$ in isobar collisions. The effects of various Woods-Saxon parameters in Tab. \ref{['tab:1']} are shown.
• Figure 2: Nonlinear coupling coefficients $\chi_4$ (left panel) and $\chi_5$ (right panel) representing the influence of nuclear structures as a function of $N_{\rm{part}}$ in 0.2 $< p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/c in isobar collisions. The effects of various Woods-Saxon parameters in Tab. \ref{['tab:1']} are shown.
• Figure 3: Symmetric cumulant ${\rm sc}_{n,m}\{4\}$ (a, b) for $n,m=2,3$ and $2,4$ and the ratios between $^{96}$Ru+$^{96}$Ru and $^{96}$Zr+$^{96}$Zr (c, d) representing the influence of nuclear structures as a function of $N_{\rm{part}}$ in 0.2 $< p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/$c$. The effects of various Woods-Saxon parameters in Tab. \ref{['tab:1']} are shown.
• Figure 4: Normalized symmetric cumulant ${\rm nsc}_{n,m}\{4\}$ (a,b) for $n,m=2,3$ and $2,4$ and the ratios between Ru+Ru and Zr+Zr (c,d) representing the influence of nuclear structures as a function of $N_{\rm{part}}$ in 0.2 $< p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/c. The effects of various Woods-Saxon parameters in Tab. \ref{['tab:1']} are shown.
• Figure 5: Pearson correlation coefficient $\rho(v_n^2,[p_{\rm T}])$ (a,b) for $n=2,3$ and the ratios between Ru+Ru and Zr+Zr (c,d) representing the influence of nuclear structures as a function of $N_{\rm{part}}$ in 0.2 $< p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/$c$. The effects of various Woods-Saxon parameters in Tab. \ref{['tab:1']} are shown.