Pion production as a test of nuclear matter properties

Nuclear matter equations of state are constructed which incorporate explicitly the pion and delta degrees of freedom. These are used in relativistic one-dimensional and three-dimensional hydrodynamical models of central nucleus-nucleus collisions to determine the influence of the compressional energy on the observed pion multiplicity. We find a modest dependence on the compressional energy but a significant difference between slab-slab and sphere-sphere collisions having to do with curved shock waves. Thus one-dimensional hydrodynamic models do not appear to be suitable for interpreting pion production at energies of 100 Me2 GeV.