Quasi equilibrium state of expanding quantum fields and two-pion Bose-Einstein correlations in $pp$ collisions at the LHC

Abstract

We argue that the two-particle momentum correlation functions of high-multiplicity $p+p$ collisions at the LHC provide a signal for a ground state structure of a quasi equilibrium state of the longitudinally boost-invariant expanding quantum field which lies in the future light cone of a collision. The physical picture is that pions are produced by the expanding quantum emitter with two different scales approximately attributed to the expanding ideal gas in local equilibrium state and ground-state condensate. Specifically, we show that the effect of suppressing the two-particle Bose-Einstein momentum correlation functions increases with increasing transverse momentum of a like-sign pion pair due to different momentum-dependence of the corresponding particle emission regions.