Nonlinear coupling of flow harmonics in heavy-ion collisions

Abstract

Anisotropic flow coefficients beyond triangular flow receive important contributions from lower-order harmonics through nonlinear coupling. We present a theoretical framework which allows one to quantify the contribution induced by such nonlinear couplings to any flow harmonic of any order. We show the effectiveness of this formalism through an application to hexagonal flow, $V_6$. We study, in particular, the coupling of $V_6$ to triangular flow, $V_3$, in Pb+Pb collisions at $~\sqrt[]{s}=2.76$ TeV, using both Large Hadron Collider data and event-by-event hydrodynamic calculations.