Determine the neutron skin type by relativistic isobaric collisions

The effects of neutron skin on the multiplicity (N-ch) and eccentricity (epsilon(2)) in relativistic Ru-96(44)+Ru-96(44) and Zr-96(40)+Zr-96(40) collisions at root s(NN) = 200 GeV are investigated with the Trento model. It is found that the Ru+Ru/Zr+Zr ratios of the N-ch distributions and epsilon(2) in mid-central collisions are exquisitely sensitive to the neutron skin type (skin vs. halo). The state-of-the-art calculations by energy density functional theory (DFT) favor the halo-type neutron skin and can soon be confronted by experimental data. It is demonstrated that the halo-type density can serve as a good surrogate for the DFT density, and thus can be efficiently employed to probe nuclear deformities by using elliptic flow data in central collisions. We provide hereby a proof-of-principle venue to simultaneously determine the neutron skin type, thickness, and nuclear deformity. (C) 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Automated summary

The effects of neutron skin on the multiplicity and eccentricity in relativistic Ru-96+Ru-96 and Zr-96+Zr-96 collisions at 200 GeV are investigated, showing that the Ru+Ru/Zr+Zr ratios are sensitive to the neutron skin type. Current DFT calculations support halo-type neutron skin and can be verified by experimental data. The halo-type density can be used as a good substitute for DFT density to probe nuclear deformities efficiently.