THE SPECTRAL-ANALYSIS OF STRONGLY INTERACTING MATTER

The intensity of spectral lines in the light emitted by stars gives information about the thermodynamic state of stellar matter. Similarly, the intensity of charmonium and bottonium lines in the spectrum of dileptons emitted in nuclear collisions can provide information about the early thermodynamic state of any strongly interacting matter created in such collisions. The J/psi-suppression found in central O-U and S-U collisions is a first instance of a change in spectral intensity. We develop a full spectral analysis for the production of ccBAR and bbBAR resonances and discuss how it can be used to explore the primordial state of matter produced in high energy heavy ion collisions.