Is holographic quark-gluon plasma homogeneous?

Abstract

We present evidence for a spatially modulated instability within the deconfined quark-gluon plasma phase of QCD. This evidence is based on robust predictions from generic holographic models, accurately fitted to lattice data, where the instability is driven by the Chern-Simons term mandated by the flavor anomalies of QCD. Such an instability occurs universally across holographic models at surprisingly low densities, within the crossover region amenable to lattice and experimental studies, therefore inviting further explorations of inhomogeneous phases in this region.