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At low to moderate collision energies where the parton formation time τ F is not small compared to the nuclear crossing time, the finite nuclear thickness significantly affects the energy density ϵ( t ) and net conserved-charge densities such as the net-baryon density n B ( t ) produced in heavy ion collisions. As a result, at low to moderate energies the trajectory in the QCD phase diagram is also affected by the finite nuclear thickness. Here, we first discuss our semi-analytical model and its results on ϵ( f ), n R ( t ), n Q ( t ), and n s ( t ) in central Au+Au collisions. We then compare the T ( t ), μ B ( t ), μ Q ( t ), and μ S ( t ) extracted with the ideal gas equation of state (EoS) with quantum statistics to those extracted with a lattice QCD-based EoS. We also compare the T -μ B trajectories with the RHIC chemical freezeout data. Finally, we discuss the effect of transverse flow on the trajectories. 

The finite nuclear thickness affects the energy density (t) and conserved-charge densities such as the net-baryon density nB(t) produced in heavy ion collisions. While the effect is small at high collision energies where the Bjorken energy density formula for the initial state is valid, the effect is large at low collision energies, where the nuclear crossing time is not small compared to the parton formation time. The temperature T(t) and chemical potentials µ(t) of the dense matter can be extracted from the densities for a given equation of state (EOS). Therefore, including the nuclear thickness is essential for the determination of the T-µB trajectory in the QCD phase diagram for relativistic nuclear collisions at low to moderate energies such as the RHIC-BES energies. In this proceeding, we will first discuss our semi-analytical method that includes the nuclear thickness effect and its results on the densities є(t), nB(t), nQ(t), and nS(t). Then, we will show the extracted T(t), µB(t), µQ(t), and µS(t) for a quark-gluon plasma using the ideal gas EOS with quantum or Boltzmann statistics. Finally, we will show the results on the T-µB trajectories in relation to the possible location of the QCD critical end point. This semi-analytical model provides a convenient tool for exploring the trajectories of nuclear collisions in the QCD phase diagram.