Seminar in Hadronic Physics

Quarkyonic Matter: theory and phenomenology

Giorgio Torrieri

FIAS & Columbia

We examine the quark percolation transition at finite density. We show that this transition has many of the characteristics claimed for “quarkyonic matter”. The percolation transition should arise, in our physical world (3 colors, 2-3 flavors) at densities parametrically larger than normal nuclear density but smaller than the densities required for deconfinement. We sketch the effective theory of the percolating Yang-Mills matter and suggest phenomenological signatures in both neutron stars and lower energy heavy ion collisions.