A quasi-linear response theory of statistical heavy-ion collisions

Abstract We develop a time-dependent theory of heavy-ion collisions which consistently treats the relative and the intrinsic motions by coupled equations derived from the many-body von Neumann equation. The structure of the equations determining the mean trajectory and the fluctuations of the relative motion is the same as that of the corresponding equations in the known linear response theory. The present theory differs, however, from the linear response theory, in that it presumes neither weak coupling between the relative motion and the intrinsic excitations, nor the canonical distribution function for the density operator of the intrinsic motions. We apply the theory especially to deep inelastic collisions, where the relative motion couples to intrinsic excitations through a stochastic hamiltonian. Based on the stochastic assumption, we study the properties of the Green functions that take into account the higher order effects of the coupling hamiltonian. We then discuss, in particular, the effects of the Green functions on the time evolution of the intrinsic state, which is described in terms of a coarse-grained master equation, the friction tensor and fluctuation dissipation theorems.