Lab Probes of Early‑Universe Phase Transitions

High‑energy heavy‑ion collisions at facilities like RHIC can recreate microsecond‑old conditions of the universe and produce measurable signatures (here, a dip in transverse‑momentum fluctuation vs collision energy) that may indicate a phase boundary or 'critical point' in quantum chromodynamics. If confirmed, such lab signals would connect collider experiments directly to cosmological phase transitions and to the equation of state of dense matter in neutron stars. — Demonstrating experimentally accessible signatures of early‑universe phase changes reframes collider physics as directly relevant to cosmology, dense‑matter astrophysics, and science funding/prioritization decisions.