Directed flow of D and B mesons in an electrically and chirally conductive QGP at LHC energies

We investigate the directed flow of D and B mesons in the presence of electromagnetic fields incorporating finite electrical and chiral conductivities at LHC energies. The momentum evolution of heavy quarks in the quark–gluon plasma (QGP) is studied using Langevin dynamics, with their interactions with the medium described within the extended quasiparticle model ( QPM p ) framework. The electromagnetic fields are obtained from analytical solutions of Maxwell’s equations that account for both electrical and chiral conductivities. These conductivities modify the space–time evolution of the electromagnetic fields, thereby influencing the splitting of the directed flow between mesons and anti-mesons. However, the influence of chiral conductivity remains secondary to that of the electrical conductivity, and its impact on the directed flow is marginal in the current formulation. The results reveal that heavy mesons containing a charm quark develop a directed flow with a sign opposite to that of heavy mesons containing a bottom quark, with the magnitude being smaller for the latter. The present study indicates that a simultaneous experimental measurement of v 1 for heavy mesons containing both charm and bottom quarks would provide valuable insight into the electromagnetic-field origin of v 1 for the heavy quarks.