Eur. Phys. J. C (2026) 86: 93
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-026-15338-3

Regular Article - Theoretical Physics

Probing nuclear geometry through multi-particle azimuthal correlations and rapidity-even dipolar flow in $_{}^{16}$O+$_{}^{16}$O collisions

Department of Physical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Berhampur, Laudigam, Dist.-Ganjam, 760003, Berhampur, Odisha, India

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Received: 18 September 2025
Accepted: 15 January 2026
Published online: 30 January 2026

Abstract

We study symmetric and asymmetric cumulants as well as rapidity-even dipolar flow in $_{}^{16}$O+$_{}^{16}$O collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathit{NN}}}=200$ GeV to explore $\alpha$-clustering phenomena in light nuclei within the viscous relativistic hydrodynamics framework. Signatures of $\alpha$-clustering manifest in the anisotropic flow coefficients and their correlations – particularly in observables involving elliptic-triangular flow correlations. We show that final-state symmetric and asymmetric cumulants – especially $\text{NSC}(2,3)$ and ${\text{NAC}}_{2,1}(2,3)$ – are sensitive to the initial nuclear geometry. Additionally, we observe a significant difference in rapidity-even dipolar flow, $v_1^{\text{even}}$, between $\alpha$-clustered and Woods–Saxon configurations in high-multiplicity events. These findings underscore the pivotal role of nuclear structure in heavy-ion collision dynamics and provide observables for distinguishing nuclear geometries, particularly in ultra-central collisions.