Flavor-Dependent QCD Critical Endpoint and Dual-Channel Fluctuations from Multi-Charge Holography

2026/07/21 by Zhibin Li, Danning Li, Mei Huang
#hep-ph

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Abstract

We construct a thermodynamically self-consistent holographic QCD framework incorporating multiple conserved charges. By introducing three independent bulk U(1) gauge fields, our Einstein-Maxwells-dilaton (EMsD) model naturally accommodates the coupled chemical potential landscape (μ_B, μ_Q, μ_S) inherent to realistic heavy-ion collisions. Crucially, thermodynamic consistency is enforced at the level of holographic renormalization, ensuring exact Maxwell cross-derivative relations without ad hoc patching. Calibrated exclusively at zero density, the model exhibits genuine predictive power for finite-density thermodynamics. We reveal that finite charge and strangeness densities induce pronounced nonmonotonic shifts in the critical endpoint (CEP) location. Furthermore, by mapping the freeze-out trajectories, we demonstrate that the allowed parameter bands robustly encompass empirical hadron resonance gas (HRG) fits. Within this physical regime, higher-order cumulant ratios for both net-baryon and net-charge channels exhibit coherent critical peaks at √s_NN ≈ 5--7 GeV. This hierarchical dual-channel signature provides a decisive, background-free strategy for the ongoing experimental search for the QCD critical point.

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