Using a transport model coupled with a phase-space coalescence afterburner, we study the triton-${}^3\mathrm{He}$ ($t\text{−}$${}^3\mathrm{He}$) ratio with both relative and differential transverse flows in semicentral ${}^{132}\mathrm{Sn}+{}^{124}\mathrm{Sn}$ reactions at a beam energy of $400$ MeV/nucleon. The neutron-proton ratios with relative and differential flows are also discussed as a reference. We find that similar to the neutron-proton pairs, the $t\text{−}$${}^3\mathrm{He}$ pairs also carry interesting information regarding the density dependence of the nuclear symmetry energy. Moreover, the nuclear symmetry energy affects more strongly the $t\text{−}$${}^3\mathrm{He}$ relative and differential flows than the ${\pi }^{-}/{\pi }^{+}$ ratio in the same reaction. The $t\text{−}$${}^3\mathrm{He}$ relative flow can be used as a particularly powerful probe of the high-density behavior of the nuclear symmetry energy.

• Received 4 June 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.80.044608