WELCOME TO THE MUSES PROJECT
MUSES is an NSF-funded large collaboration project that is developing a new cyberinfrastructure to provide the scientific community novel tools to answer critical interdisciplinary questions in nuclear physics, gravitational wave astrophysics, and heavy-ion physics.
DOCUMENTATION
Updated & Integrated
Many of the existing calculation packages have a long and storied history, with unmaintainable code written in programming languages that have fallen from favor. Much of the initial work of MUSES is converting, rewriting, and upgrading these scripts to form the first code modules to be integrated into calculation packages that together will form the core Calculation Engine. Most of the code will be rewritten as high-performance C++ libraries that can be wrapped for use in other languages such as Python as desired.
Cloud-native & Scalable
The MUSES cyberinfrastructure is more than the Calculation Engine. We are building a cloud native deployment system based on the latest container technologies, leveraging the power of Kubernetes to create a reproducible environment compatible with a wide range of hosting platforms. Individuals and organizations can deploy their own MUSES on-premises, utilizing their own backend computing solutions and maintaining full control over their data.
COLLABORATIVE TOOLS
The MUSES collaboration consists of many researchers and technical professionals across dozens of institutions spread across the globe. We are building and using a collaborative platform designed for the demands of inclusive and vibrant scientific communities.
Community Forum
Engage and connect with the MUSES collaboration and growing open source community on our Discourse forum.
(Public)
Collaboration cloud storage
A dedicated Nextcloud server provides a wealth of collaborative tools, including cloud file storage, group calendars, and many more via installable Nextcloud apps.
(Collaborators only)
Community chat and teleconferencing
Matrix is the frontier of free, open source, and decentralized communications. We host the MUSES space on Matrix and rooms created for general discussion, support, and outreach, while providing a federated way for the general public to connect with the project.
JupyterHub
Users can launch dedicated JupyterLab servers, providing a powerful platform to process data using the high-performance computers at NCSA. A custom Universal Worker Service API server provides asynchronous parallel processing via Kubernetes Jobs, with support for NCSA Delta coming soon.
(Collaborators only)
Collaborative documents
Real-time, collaborative document editing is a valuable tool for brainstorming, drafting publications, and more. Our HedgeDoc-powered service brings this productivity to the collaboration, with the convenience of optional public document editing.
(Collaborators only)
Organization & Leadership
The MUSES collaboration leadership structure is found on the MUSES Organization website hosted by the University of Illinois Physics department.
VIEW ALL MEMBERSNicolas Yunes
Principal Investigator
Jaki Noronha-Hostler
Co-PI
Claudia Ratti
Co-PI
Veronica Dexheimer
Co-PI
Jorge Noronha
Co-PI
T. Andrew Manning
Senior Investigator at NCSA
Recent News
Modern nuclear and astrophysical constraints of dense matter in a redefined chiral approach
Published on April 01, 2024
Title
Modern nuclear and astrophysical constraints of dense matter in a redefined chiral approach
Authors
Rajesh Kumar, Yuhan Wang, Nikolas Cruz Camacho, Arvind Kumar, Jacquelyn Noronha-Hostler, Veronica Dexheimer
Abstract
We explore the quantum chromodynamics (QCD) phase diagram’s complexities, including quark deconfinement transitions, liquid-gas phase changes, and critical points by using the chiral mean-field (CMF) model that is able to capture all these features. We introduce a vector meson field redefinition within the CMF framework, enabling precise adjustments of meson masses and coupling strengths related to vector meson interactions. Performing a new fit to the deconfinement potential, we are able to replicate recent lattice QCD results, low-energy nuclear physics properties, neutron star observational data, and key phase diagram features as per modern constraints. This approach enhances our understanding of vector mesons’ roles in mediating nuclear interactions and their impact on the equation of state, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of the QCD phase diagram and its implications for nuclear and astrophysical phenomena.
Hot QCD phase diagram from holographic Einstein–Maxwell–Dilaton models
Date: November 30, 2023
Title: Hot QCD phase diagram from holographic Einstein–Maxwell–Dilaton models
Authors: Romulo Rougemont, Joaquin Grefa, Mauricio Hippert, Jorge Noronha, Jacquelyn Noronha-Hostler, Israel Portillo, Claudia Ratti
Abstract: In this review, we provide an up-to-date account of quantitative bottom-up holographic descriptions of the strongly coupled quark–gluon plasma (QGP) produced in relativistic heavy-ion collisions, based on the class of gauge-gravity Einstein–Maxwell–Dilaton (EMD) effective models. The holographic approach is employed to tentatively map the QCD phase diagram at finite temperature onto a dual theory of charged, asymptotically Anti-de Sitter (AdS) black holes living in five dimensions. With a quantitative focus on the hot QCD phase diagram, the nonconformal holographic EMD models reviewed here are adjusted to describe first-principles lattice results for the finite-temperature QCD equation of state, with 2+1 flavors and physical quark masses, at zero chemical potential and vanishing electromagnetic fields. We review the evolution of such effective models and the corresponding improvements produced in quantitative holographic descriptions of the deconfined hot QGP phase of QCD. The predictive power of holographic EMD models is tested by quantitatively comparing their predictions for the hot QCD equation of state at nonzero baryon density and the corresponding state-of-the-art lattice QCD results. Hydrodynamic transport coefficients such as the shear and bulk viscosities predicted by these EMD constructions are also compared to the corresponding profiles favored by the latest phenomenological multistage models simultaneously describing different types of heavy-ion data. We briefly report preliminary results from a Bayesian analysis using EMD models, which provide systematic evidence that lattice QCD results at finite temperature and zero baryon density strongly constrains the free parameters of such bottom-up holographic constructions. Remarkably, the set of parameters constrained by lattice results at vanishing chemical potential turns out to produce EMD models in quantitative agreement with lattice QCD results also at finite baryon density. We also review results for equilibrium and transport properties from magnetic EMD models, which effectively describe the hot and magnetized QGP at finite temperatures and magnetic fields with zero chemical potentials. Finally, we provide a critical assessment of the main limitations and drawbacks of the holographic models reviewed in the present work, and point out some perspectives we believe are of fundamental importance for future developments.
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Bayesian location of the QCD critical point from a holographic perspective
Date: September 1, 2023
Title: Bayesian location of the QCD critical point from a holographic perspective
Authors: Mauricio Hippert, Joaquin Grefa, T. Andrew Manning, Jorge Noronha, Jacquelyn Noronha-Hostler, Israel Portillo Vazquez, Claudia Ratti, Romulo Rougemont, Michael Trujillo
Abstract: A fundamental question in QCD is the existence of a phase transition at large doping of quarks over antiquarks. We present the first prediction of a QCD critical point (CP) from a Bayesian analysis constrained by first principle results at zero doping. We employ the gauge/gravity duality to map QCD onto a theory of dual black holes. Predictions for the CP location in different realizations of the model overlap at one sigma. Even if many prior samples do not include a CP, one is found in nearly 100% of posterior samples, indicating a strong preference for a CP.
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