Event-by-event generation of vorticity in heavy-ion collisions

Abstract

In a noncentral heavy-ion collision, the two colliding nuclei have finite angular momentum in the direction perpendicular to the reaction plane. After the collision, a fraction of the total angular momentum is retained in the produced hot quark-gluon matter and is manifested in the form of fluid shear. Such fluid shear creates finite flow vorticity. We study some features of such generated vorticity, including its strength, beam energy dependence, centrality dependence, and spatial distribution.