The fidelity of two-photon intensity interferometry for reflecting the dynamics of nascnt quark-gluon plasma formed in a high energy nucleus-nucleus collision is examined. A (3 + 1)-dimensional expansion of the plasma as well as a (1 + 1)-dimensional expansion according to Bjorken hydrodynamics, both with a first order phase transition, are considered. The correlation of high transverse-momentum photons is shown to be a precision tool for the investigation of the space-time evolution of the high density QCD plasma. In particular, the longitudinal correlation function, which depicts the time development of the system, is seen to have its origin in two sources: one corresponding to the early plasma phase and the second to the later stages. This aspect may help identify thermal photons according to their "time of birth" during evolution.

• Received 10 June 1993

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.49.4523