The Nature of Strongly-interacting Matter across the QCD Phase Diagram

Jamie Karthein被授予NSF数学和物理科学博士后研究奖学金，在马萨诸塞州理工学院进行研究和教育计划。 Karthein将开发和改进量子色动力学（QCD）物质的理论状态方程，以相对论重离子碰撞的数据为基准，特别是布鲁克海文国家实验室相对论重离子对撞机的光束能量扫描。 沿着这项研究，Karthein将与麻省理工学院社区和公平办公室合作，在麻省理工学院策划一个关于STEM少数民族领导技能的研讨会系列，并与麻省理工学院西班牙裔专业工程师协会合作，为麻省理工学院STEM本科生建立一个研究生导师计划。拟议的研究将加深对基本的强互动的理解，自然界的四大力量之一。强力负责将质子和中子结合在一起，共同强子，发生在我们的宇宙中。通过了解重离子对撞机（HIC）中产生的介质，科学家们研究宇宙的原始液体，夸克-胶子等离子体，以及夸克和胶子联合收割机形成强子的机制。QCD相图的结果对天体物理学界研究中子星合并是有影响的。此外，HIC中产生的极端物质也可以为强耦合系统的其他研究领域提供信息，包括磁光阱中的超冷原子气体。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Jamie Karthein is awarded an NSF Mathematical and Physical Sciences Ascending Postdoctoral Research Fellowship to conduct a program of research and education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Karthein will develop and improve a theoretical equation of state for Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) matter, benchmarked by data from relativistic heavy ion collisions, in particular the beam energy scan at Brookhaven National Laboratory’s Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. Along with this research, Karthein will curate a workshop serieson leadership skills for minorities in STEM at MIT in collaboration with the MIT Institute Community and Equity Office and establish a Graduate School Mentorship program in partnership with the MIT Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers for MIT undergraduates in STEM.The proposed research will lead to an increased understanding of the fundamental strong interaction, one of the four forces of nature. The strong force is responsible for binding together the protons and neutrons, collectively hadrons, occurring in our universe today. By understanding the medium produced in Heavy Ion Colliders (HICs), scientists study the primordial liquid of the universe, the Quark-Gluon Plasma, and as a result, the mechanism by which quarks and gluons combine to form hadrons. Results on the QCD phase diagram are impactful for the astrophysics community for studies of neutron-star mergers. Additionally, the extreme matter created in HICs can also inform other fields of research on strongly coupled systems, including ultra-cold atomic gases in magneto-optical traps.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.