{
  "abstract": "We extend the Polyakov-loop-enhanced linear-sigma model to encompass four flavors and utilize it to analyze the light, strange, and charmed meson mass spectrum as it transitions from the vacuum into a hot and dense medium. Within the mean-field approximation, we determine the masses of scalar ($0^{++}$), pseudoscalar ($0^{-+}$), vector ($1^{--}$), and axial-vector ($1^{++}$) meson states, encompassing both open- and hidden-charm constituents, as functions of temperature $T$ and baryon chemical potential $μ_B$. With parameters calibrated to the vacuum spectrum, the charm degree of freedom proves essential for an accurate description of observed masses, and charmed states acquire their in-medium modifications from the light and strange condensates that modify their valence quarks. Each species seems to undergo melting along its distinct trajectory, yet all transitions occur within a narrow band surrounding the chiral transition. The open-charm $D$-meson functions as a precise indicator of chiral restoration: its mass increases substantially across the transition and reflects the non-strange condensate, whereas hidden-charm states remain largely unaffected and serve as reference standards for the surrounding matter. We establish that transition points from three independent measurements delineate the chiral phase boundary ($T_c$, $μ_B$), whose curvature matches lattice-QCD predictions and which persists as a crossover throughout the examined range, exhibiting no critical endpoint.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2609.26817",
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Nourhan M. Rfeek"
    },
    {
      "name": "Alexandra Friesen"
    },
    {
      "name": "Yuri Kalinovsky"
    },
    {
      "name": "Saleh O. Allehabi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Azzah A. Alshehri"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ashraf F. El-Sherif"
    },
    {
      "name": "Abdel Nasser Tawfik"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8sfhd8gc79phy.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2609.26817",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "8sfhd8gc79phy",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.26817",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "hep-ph"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3106|Quantum Chromodynamics and Particle Interactions"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7214200608",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2609.26817",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-19",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8sfhd8gc79phy.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:23:56Z",
      "native_id": "2609.26817",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.26817"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:hep-ph",
      "subfield": "high-energy"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Chiral Phase Structure and In-Medium Modifications of Charmed Meson Masses within SU(4) extended Linear-Sigma Models",
  "title_text": "Chiral Phase Structure and In-Medium Modifications of Charmed Meson Masses within SU(4) extended Linear-Sigma Models",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:23:56Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8sfhd8gc79phy",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}