# Harmonic decomposition of three-particle azimuthal correlations at energies available at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider

Adamczyk, L, Adkins, JK, Agakishiev, G, Aggarwal, MM, Ahammed, Z, Ajitanand, NN, Alekseev, I, Anderson, DM, Aoyama, R, Aparin, A
et al (show 332 more authors) (2018) Harmonic decomposition of three-particle azimuthal correlations at energies available at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. PHYSICAL REVIEW C, 98 (3). 034918-.

We present measurements of three-particle correlations for various harmonics in Au+Au collisions at energies ranging from $\sqrt{s_{{\rm NN}}}=7.7$ to 200 GeV using the STAR detector. The quantity $\langle\cos(m\phi_1+n\phi_2-(m+n)\phi_3)\rangle$ is evaluated as a function of $\sqrt{s_{{\rm NN}}}$, collision centrality, transverse momentum, $p_T$, pseudo-rapidity difference, $\Delta\eta$, and harmonics ($m$ and $n$). These data provide detailed information on global event properties like the three-dimensional structure of the initial overlap region, the expansion dynamics of the matter produced in the collisions, and the transport properties of the medium. A strong dependence on $\Delta\eta$ is observed for most harmonic combinations consistent with breaking of longitudinal boost invariance. Data reveal changes with energy in the two-particle correlation functions relative to the second-harmonic event-plane and provide ways to constrain models of heavy-ion collisions over a wide range of collision energies.