The second Workshop of the Network NA7-HF-QGP of the European program "STRONG-2020" and the HFHF Theory Retreat 2023 of the Helmholtz Academy of Hesse will be held from 28 September till 4 October 2023 in Giardini Naxos, Sicily, Italy.

The NA7-HF-QGP Network is a common network of theorists and experimentalists to address all topics which are of relevance for the physics of heavy quarks in pp, pA and AA collisions. The Network topics include the production of heavy quarks in elementary collisions, the stopping of strongly interacting matter in the entrance channel, the formation and expansion of a quark gluon plasma (QGP) and the study of its properties by different probes and on the lattice, the elementary interactions of heavy quarks with the QGP, the hadronization of the QGP and of heavy quarks the final state interaction among the hadrons.
The HFHF Retreat will bring together the theory groups from different German universities working on physics of FAIR. The key topics include the dynamical descriptions of heavy-ion collisions in terms of microscopic transport approaches and hydrodynamics, the properties of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP), the phase transition, the chiral symmetry restoration, the properties of hadrons in hot and dense medium.

The talks will be given by the leading researchers and young scientists (PhD students and young postdocs); the format of the meeting will provide possibilities for free discussions, exchange of opinions and ideas.
We foresee as well 2 series of lectures on "Exploring the phase diagram of strong-interaction matter with QCD inspired models" by M. Buballa and "Jets in strongly interacting matter" by K. Tywoniuk

The venue and accommodation of participants will be at the the 'Atahotels Naxos Beach' in Giardini Naxos, Sicily, Italy.