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the physics of star
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The primary physics task of STAR is to study the formation and
characteristics of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP), a state of matter believed to
exist at sufficiently high energy densities. Detecting and understanding the QGP
allows us to understand better the universe in the moments after the Big Bang,
where the symmetries (and lack of symmetries) of our surroundings were put into
motion.
Unlike other physics experiments where a theoretical idea can be tested
directly by a single measurement, STAR must make use of a variety of
simultaneous studies in order to draw strong conclusions about the QGP. This is
due both to the complexity of the system formed in the high-energy nuclear
collision and the unexplored landscape of the physics we study. STAR therefore
consists of several types of detectors, each specializing in detecting certain
types of particles or characterizing their motion. These detectors work together
in an advanced data acquisition and subsequent physics analysis that allows
final statements to be made about the collision.
Click on the links to the left for more information about STAR physics.
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