Oxygen collisions at the LHC show new indications of extreme state of matter – Home

Researchers at the Large Hadron Collider have identified new indicators of quark–gluon plasma within oxygen and neon collisions. This state of matter previously existed only during the first microseconds following the Big Bang. Conditions inside these collisions reach temperatures exceeding 100,000 times the heat found at the center of the Sun, causing composite particles to break down into their constituent quarks and gluons.

For years, physicists believed that colliding heavy ions like lead provided the exclusive environment for this plasma formation. Recent results from the ALICE, ATLAS, CMS, and LHCb collaborations challenge this view. By analyzing oxygen–oxygen and neon–neon collisions, the team observed clear signs of parton energy loss, where fast-moving particles lose momentum as they travel through the dense, hot medium.

Evidence for this phenomenon comes from multiple sources. The ATLAS collaboration documented an imbalance in particle jets, while CMS observed the suppression of charged-particle production. Further studies from LHCb on charm quarks and ALICE on neutral pions provide consistent findings across independent experimental methods. Researchers also noted the suppression of upsilon mesons and anisotropic flow patterns in baryons, both of which serve as classic indicators for the presence of this primordial state.

These findings suggest that lighter ions can successfully recreate the conditions of the early Universe. The data confirms that energy loss scales with the size and density of the collision. As the LHC transitions to its High-Luminosity configuration, scientists expect to collect more precise data to refine their understanding of these high-energy interactions. The ability to probe this state using varied particle sizes provides a new window into the mechanics of the early Universe.