Alpha clustering and flow in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions

Abstract: We show how ultra-relativistic collisions of light nuclei with heavy targets may be used to record snap-shots of the ground-state configurations and reveal information on cluster correlations. The development of collective flow in the formed fireball, which reflects the geometric correlations in the initial state, is essential for the method. As an illustration we analyze the 12C-208Pb collisions.