Unveiling the Structure of the Perfect Superfluid using Correlation Functions
The sequential clustering of particles into jets provides an algorithmic link between final-state hadrons and the partons from which they originated. Jet substructure techniques allow us to trace the radiation history of jets, offering a powerful framework to probe Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) across different energy scales. Projected N-point Energy Correlators (ENCs) are a novel class of observables that explore the energy flow within hadronic jets.
This thesis presents the first measurements of the two-point (EEC) and projected three-point correlators (E3C) as well as their ratio (E3C/EEC) at √s = 13 TeV using Run 2 data from the ALICE experiment. The ENCs demonstrate characteristic scaling behavior, while their ratios reveal sensitivity to the running of the strong coupling constant, αs. Corresponding first measurements of E3C and E3C/EEC at √s = 5.02 TeV are also presented, showing consistent features across center of mass energies.
At extreme temperatures and densities, strongly interacting matter undergoes a phase transition into a deconfined state known as the Quark Gluon Plasma (QGP), which is recreated in heavy-ion collisions at the LHC. This thesis presents both the first application of and the techniques to measure higher-point Energy Correlators in heavy-ion collisions, thereby expanding the set of substructure tools available to probe the microscopic properties of the QGP.
Thesis committee: Helen Caines (advisor), Laura Havener, David Moore, Ian Moult, and Raaghav Kunnawalkam Elayavalli (external)