EMMI Workshop: Light-ion collisions 2026

In an effort to scan the degree of collective behaviour as a function of system size, last year, O+O and Ne+Ne collisions were ran at the LHC, and to great success. Hydrodynamic models were able to accurately predict anisotropic flow, especially ratios of flow harmonics between these two systems, which carry imprints of the tetrahedral shape of oxygen and the bowling pin shape of neon. In this talk, we will present kinetic theory based simulation results for flow observables in these systems and compare them to hydrodynamic results in a controlled setup as a function of the interaction strength, point out similarities and differences in the behaviour and discuss the applicability of hydrodynamics and possible pitfalls.