Tetsufumi Hirano (Sophia University, Tokio, Japan)

The tiniest and hottest fluid: exploring the quark–gluon plasma

Abstract: When two heavy nuclei collide at nearly the speed of light, they create an extremely hot and dense state of matter — the quark–gluon plasma (QGP) — where quarks and gluons move freely for a fleeting moment. Despite existing only for about 10^{−23} seconds and within a volume smaller than an atomic nucleus, this exotic medium behaves like an almost perfect fluid with remarkably small viscosity. In this talk, I will explore how collective flow phenomena emerge from such tiny and short-lived systems, what we have learned about the fundamental properties of QCD matter, and how these findings challenge our  understanding of fluid dynamics at the smallest possible scales.

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Tetsufumi Hirano is a theoretical physicist in high-energy nuclear physics, working as a professor and PI in Hadron Physics Group at Sophia University. His primary focus is on the application and development of hydrodynamics in high-energy physics. His works received significant attention worldwide, is one of the most influential scientists within the hydrodynamics community, and received (among other distinctions) the Zimányi Medal for the most outstanding young theoretical researcher in 2011.