The Physics of STAR
Scientists believe that, in the fractions of a second after the Big Bang, the expanding matter was so hot and dense that protons and neutrons couldn't exist yet. Instead, the early universe was composed of tiny quarks and gluons, which in today's cool universe are confined to exist only within other particles like protons. Collisions of heavy nuclei at sufficiently high energies allow us to explore whether quarks and gluons do in fact become deconfined when subjected to high densities, and if so, what the properties of this matter (a.k.a. quark-gluon plasma) are.
Read more about this topic: STAR Detector
Famous quotes containing the words physics and/or star:
“The labor we delight in physics pain.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Well gentlemen, this is it. This is what we’ve been waiting for. Tonight your target is Tokyo. And you’re gonna play ‘em the Star Spangled Banner with two-ton bombs. All you’ve got to do is to remember what you’ve learned and follow your squadron leaders. They’ll get you in, and they’ll get you out. Any questions? All right that’s all. Good luck to you. Give ‘em hell.”
—Dudley Nichols (1895–1960)