The role of elliptic flow correlations in the discovery of the sQGP at RHIC

Abstract

Flow measurements are reviewed with particular emphasis on the hydrodynamic character of elliptic flow at RHIC. Hydrodynamic scaling compatible with the production of highly thermalized matter having a high degree of collective interactions and extremely low viscosity, is observed for a broad selection of the data. These properties suggest the production of a new state of strongly interacting nuclear matter at extremely high density and temperature where the relevant degrees of freedom are those of quarks and gluons, ie. the sQGP.