A1 Journal article (refereed)
Approach to equilibrium of a quarkonium in a quark-gluon plasma (2018)

Blaizot, J.-P., & Escobedo Espinosa, M. (2018). Approach to equilibrium of a quarkonium in a quark-gluon plasma. Physical Review D, 98(7), Article 074007. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.98.074007

JYU authors or editors

Escobedo Espinosa, Miguel

Publication details

All authors or editors: Blaizot, Jean-Paul; Escobedo Espinosa, Miguel

Journal or series: Physical Review D

ISSN: 2470-0010

eISSN: 2470-0029

Publication year: 2018

Volume: 98

Issue number: 7

Article number: 074007

Publisher: American Physical Society

Publication country: United States

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.98.074007

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Partially open access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/60124

Additional information: Open access funded by SCOAP3.

Abstract

We derive equations of motion for the reduced density matrix of a heavy quarkonium in contact with a quark-gluon plasma in thermal equilibrium. These equations allow in particular a proper treatment of the regime when the temperature of the plasma is comparable to the binding energy of the quarkonium. These equations are used to study how the quarkonium approaches equilibrium with the plasma, and we discuss the corresponding entropy increase, or free energy decrease, depending on the temperature regime. The effect of collisions can be accounted for by the generalization of the imaginary potential introduced in previous studies, and from which collision rates are derived. An important outcome of the present analysis is that this imaginary potential has a sizable dependence on the energy of the relevant transitions.

Keywords: particle physics; quark-gluon plasma

Fields of science: