Thermodynamics of lattice QCD with two light quarks on a 16³ × 8 lattice. II

We have extended our earlier simulations of the high-temperature behavior of lattice QCD with two light flavors of staggered quarks on a 16³×8 lattice to a lower quark mass (m_q=0.00625). The transition from hadronic matter to a quark-gluon plasma is observed at 6/g²=5.49(2) corresponding to a temperature of T_c ≈ 140 MeV. We present measurements of observables which probe the nature of the quark-gluon plasma and serve to distinguish it from hadronic matter. Although the transition is quite abrupt, we have seen no indica-tions that it is first order.