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Dissecting Jet Modification in the Quark-Gluon Plasma with Multipoint Energy Correlators

João Barata1, Ian Moult2, Andrey V. Sadofyev3,4,5, and João M. Silva5,6,7

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 137, 052302 – Published 31 July, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/9jzc-7jcv

Abstract

Energy correlators have recently attracted significant attention in the study of heavy ion collisions due to their potential to robustly connect experimental measurements with an underlying quantum field theoretic description. While theoretical studies have so far primarily focused on the simplest two-point correlator, mapping out the dynamics of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP) will require developing a theoretical understanding of multipoint energy correlators. In this Letter, we present a systematic theoretical study of multipoint energy correlators for jets fragmenting in a dense quark-gluon plasma, accounting for both the medium’s perturbative modification to the jet and its hydrodynamical backreaction. We consider both the scaling behavior of projected correlators, as well as the shape dependent three-point correlator, highlighting how both provide insight into interactions with the QGP. We discuss the parametric dependence of modifications on the medium scales, opening new opportunities to experimentally separate jet modifications from the medium response. Our results open the door to a systematic exploration of multipoint energy correlators in heavy ion collisions.

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 137, 052302– Published 31 July, 2026
  • Received 18 April 2025
  • Revised 20 May 2026
  • Accepted 23 June 2026
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP3.

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