Classification of initial state granularity via 2D Fourier expansion

A new method for quantifying fluctuations in the initial state of heavy ion collisions is presented. The initial state energy distribution is decomposed with a set of orthogonal basis functions which include both angular and radial variation. The resulting two-dimensional Fourier coefficients provide additional information about the nature of the initial state fluctuations compared to a purely angular decomposition. We apply this method to ensembles of initial states generated by both Glauber and color glass condensate Monte-Carlo codes. In addition initial state configurations with varying amounts of fluctuations generated by a dynamic transport approach are analyzed to test the sensitivity of the procedure. The results allow for a full characterization of the initial state structures that is useful to discriminate the different initial state models currently in use. Communicated by Steffen Bass © 2013 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Duke Scholars

Author Robert L. Wolpert Statistical Science