CERN's ALICE Experiment Detects Quark-Gluon Plasma in Smaller Oxygen and Neon Collisions

New results from CERN's ALICE experiment indicate that quark-gluon plasma, the ultra-hot state of matter thought to have filled the universe after the Big Bang, can be produced in collisions involving lighter ions like oxygen-16 and neon-20. This finding, from light-ion collisions conducted in July 2025 and reported on August 30, 2026, pushes the boundary for "little big bangs" to smaller systems than previously observed with heavier ions like lead or gold. The study is published in Physical Review Letters.