From March 21 to April 4, 2026, the "C3NT Workshop on Jet-soft Dynamical Medium Interaction in High-Energy Heavy-Ion Collisions" was successfully held at the Institute of Particle Physics (IOPP) of Central China Normal University and the Central China Center for Nuclear Theory (C3NT). Lasting nearly two weeks, the workshop attracted over 50 experts and scholars from about 15 countries and regions to jointly explore the complex dynamical interactions between jets and the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) medium in high-energy heavy-ion collisions.

Focusing on the core theme of "Jet-Soft Matter Dynamical Correlations," the workshop aimed to surpass the traditional method of treating the QGP as simply a strongly interacting matter in local equilibirum, achieving a deeper understanding of jet interactions with the QGP. During the half-month workshop, experts and scholars from renowned universities and research institutions—including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Vanderbilt University, Heidelberg University, the Laboratório de Instrumentação e Física Experimental de Partículas (LIP), University of Belgrade, University of Cape Town, Tsinghua University, University of Science and Technology of China, Shandong University, and Nanjing Normal University—delivered 35 high-level invited talks. Through in depth presentations and informal discussions, participants shared the latest theoretical and experimental progress regarding jet energy loss, medium response, non-equilibrium evolution, and soft-hard correlations.

Dr. Florian Lindenbauer from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Notably, Dr. Florian Lindenbauer from MIT, Prof. Magdalena Djordjevic from Belgrade University, and Prof. William Horowitz from University of Cape Town delivered excellent reports on frontier topics about jet interactions with the non-equilibrium initial state of heavy-ion collisions and using jets to probe the QGP properties. Additionally, Prof. Klaus Werner from SUBATECH and Prof. Yasuki Tachibana from Akita International University presented updates on developing Monte Carlo event generators of jets like EPOS and JETSCAPE. Prof. Rithya Kunnawalkam Elayavalli from Vanderbilt University, Prof. Maowu Nie from Shandong University, and Prof. Yaxian Mao from Central China Normal University also shared the latest data analysis results from large-scale experimental facilities.

Prof. Rithya Kunnawalkam Elayavalli from Vanderbilt University

The organizers of this workshop included: Liliana Apolinário (LIP, Portugal), Shanshan Cao (Shandong University), Tetsufumi Hirano (Sophia University, Japan), Yen-Jie Lee (MIT, USA), Matthew Sievert (New Mexico State University, USA), Daniel Pablos (Oviedo University, Spain), and Yasuki Tachibana (Akita International University, Japan).

Prof. Shanshan Cao, Shandong University, chaired the session

As the host institutions, the Institute of Particle Physics (IOPP) at Central China Normal University and the Central China Center for Nuclear Theory (C3NT) have long been dedicated to frontier research on strong interactions and nuclear matter properties under extreme conditions. The success of this workshop not only provided a platform for domestic and international scholars to exchange the latest results on jet-medium interactions but also further highlighted the pivotal role of C3NT in research on high-energy nuclear physics. In the future, this platform will continue to strengthen cooperation among international community, contributing to the understanding of the dynamical properties of the QGP medium in high-energy heavy-ion collisions.

Group Photo of Participants from Week 1 of the Workshop on Jet-Soft Dynamical Medium Interaction in High-Energy Heavy-Ion Collisions

Group Photo of Participants from Week 2 of the Workshop on Jet-Soft Dynamical Medium Interaction in High-Energy Heavy-Ion Collisions

Workshop Website:  https://indico.ihep.ac.cn/event/26337/
Correspondent: Xiangyu Shui
Proofreader: Shanshan Cao