We report on the most recent applications of the Auxiliary Field Diffusion Monte Carlo (AFDMC) method. The equation of state (EOS) for pure neutron matter in both normal and BCS phase and the superfluid gap in the low--density regime are computed, using a realistic Hamiltonian containing the Argonne AV8' plus Urbana IX three--nucleon interaction. Preliminary results for the EOS of isospin--asymmetric nuclear matter are also presented.
In these proceedings, we discuss the current status of nuclear bound state predictions based on chiral nuclear interactions. Results of ordinary $s$- and $p$-shell nuclei and light hypernuclei are shown.
The well-known correlations of low-energy three and four-nucleon observables with a typical three-nucleon scale (e.g., the Tjon line) is extended to light nuclei and nuclear matter. Evidence for the scaling between light nuclei binding energies and the triton one are pointed out. We argue that the saturation energy and density of nuclear matter are correlated to the triton binding energy. The available systematic nuclear matter calculations indicate a possible band structure representing these correlations.
We develop the method for the calculation of the total reaction cross sections induced by the halo nuclei and stable nuclei. This approach is based on the Glauber theory, which is valid for nuclear reactions at high energy. It is extended for nuclear reactions at low energy and intermediate energy by including both the quantum correction and Coulomb correction under the assumption of the effective nuclear density distribution. The calculated results of the total reaction cross section induced by stable nuclei agree well with the 30 experimental data within 10 percent accuracy.The comparison be…
The 1S0 pairing gap in isospin-symmetric nuclear matter and finite nuclei is investigated using the chiral nucleon-nucleon potential at the N3LO order in the two-body sector, and the N2LO order in the three-body sector. To include realistic nuclear forces in RHB (Relativistic Hartree Bolgoliubov) calculations we rely on a separable form of the pairing interaction adjusted to the bare nuclear force. The separable pairing force is applied to the analysis of pairing properties for several isotopic and isotonic chains of spherical nuclei.
An introduction to nuclear theory is given starting from the quantum chromodynamics foundations for quark and gluon fields, then discussing properties of pions and nucleons, interactions between nucleons, structure of the deuteron and light nuclei, and finishing at the description of heavy nuclei. It is shown how concepts of different energy and size scales and ideas related to effective fields and symmetry breaking, enter our description of nuclear systems.
We study nuclear matter and finite nuclei in terms of the quark mean field (QMF) model, in which we describe the nucleon using the constituent quark model. The meson mean fields, in particular the sigma meson, created by other nucleons act on quarks inside a nucleon and change the nucleon properties in nuclear medium. The QMF model predicts an increasing size of the nucleon as well as a reduction of the nucleon mass in the nuclear environment. The present model is applied to study the properties of finite nuclei after fixing all the parameters by the nuclear matter properties, and it is found …
The main aim of the thesis is to study the properties of nuclear matter, i.e., finite nuclei to infinite nuclear matter, at zero and finite temperature within effective field theory motived relativistic mean-field model by using some of the recent parameter sets. For this, we have chosen exotic, superheavy, and natural/neutron-rich thermally fissile nuclei and studied ground as well as excited-state bulk and surface properties of nuclei. We have also tried to figure out the possible constraints on the DM variables by considering WIMP, a DM candidate, inside the NS core and using gravitational-…
We investigate the properties of 3He, 4He, 6He, 7Li and 16O nuclei in nuclear matter of finite temperature and density. A Dyson expansion of the many-body Green function leads to few-body equations that are solved using the ntegro-Differential Equation Approach (IDEA) and the Antisymmetrized Molecular Dynamics (AMD) methods. The use of the latter method allows us to trace the individual movement of the wave packet for each nucleon and the formation and disintegration of quasi-nuclei in a changing thermodynamical nuclear matter environment.
We present a model for the description of nuclear matter and finite nuclei, and at the same time, for the study of medium modifications of nucleon properties. The nucleons are described as nontopological solitons which interact through the self-consistent exchange of scalar and vector mesons. The model explicitly incorporates quark degrees of freedom into nuclear many-body systems and provides satisfactory results on the nuclear properties. The present model predicts a significant increase of the nucleon radius at normal nuclear matter density. It is very interesting to see the nucleon propert…
A shortlist of Skyrme force parameterizations, recently found to have passed a series of constraints relating to nuclear matter properties is analyzed for their ability to reproduce data in finite nuclei. We analyse binding energies, isotope shifts and fission barriers. We find that the subset of forces have no common ability to reproduce (or otherwise) properties of finite nuclei, despite passing the extensive range of nuclear matter constraints.
We systematically investigate the vacuum stability and nuclear properties in the effective chiral model with higher order terms in $σ$. We evaluate the model parameters by considering the saturation properties of nuclear matter as well as the normal vacuum to be globally stable at zero and finite baryon densities. We can find parameter sets giving moderate equations of state, and apply these models to finite nuclei.
Three versions of the quark-meson coupling (QMC) model are applied to describe properties of nuclear matter and finite nuclei. The models differ in the treatment of the bag constant and in terms of nonlinear scalar self-interactions. As a consequence opposite predictions for the medium modifications of the internal nucleon structure arise. After calibrating the model parameters at equilibrium nuclear matter density, binding energies, charge radii, single-particle spectra and density distributions of spherical nuclei are analyzed and compared with QHD calculations. For the models which predict …
The pervasive role of the nuclear symmetry energy in establishing some nuclear static and dynamical properties, and in governing some attributes of neutron star properties is highlighted.
The existing nuclear masses formula and nuclear masses model has undoubtedly achieved very good results, but it is still not satisfactory for some nuclear masses. Although there are many studies in Odd-Even staggering (OES) of nuclear masses, but the research on nuclear masses by using the systematicness of OES is indeed very few. Our purpose in this paper is to describe an empirical formula for Odd-Even staggering of nuclear masses that can be useful in describing and predicting nuclear masses. We empirically obtained the formula of odd-Z (odd-N) nuclei and even-Z (even-N) nuclei based on stu…
The connection between neutrino physics, nucleosynthesis of elements in astrophysical sites, laboratory measurements with rare exotic nuclei and astronomical observations is discussed. The key role played by neutrinos is emphasized and the close connection between neutrino physics and nucleosynthesis is highlighted.
The past two decades have witnessed tremendous progress in the microscopic description of atomic nuclei. The Topical Review `The Future of Nuclear Structure' aims at summarizing the current state-of-the-art microscopic calculations in Nuclear Theory and to give a useful reference for young researches who wish to learn more about this exciting discipline.
Mass number dependence of the nuclear radii is closely related to the nuclear matter properties. It is known that the most of nuclei exhibit some deformation. We discuss how the nuclear density profile is modified by the nuclear deformation to elucidate the enhancement mechanism of the nuclear radii through a systematic investigation of neutron-rich Ne, Mg, Si, S, Ar, Ti, Cr, and Fe isotopes. Skyrme-Hartree-Fock calculations are performed in a three-dimensional Cartesian grid to describe the nuclear deformation in a non-empirical way. The role of the nuclear deformation on the nuclear density …
The asymmetry in the energy spectra between mirror nuclei (the Thomas-Ehrman shifts) around $^{16}$O is investigated from a phenomenological viewpoint. The recent data on proton-rich nuclei indicates that the residual nuclear interaction is reduced for the loosely bound s-orbit by as much as 30%, which originates in the broad radial distribution of the proton single-particle wave function.
We calculate the ground-state energy of 4He, 8He, 16O, and 40Ca using the auxiliary field diffusion Monte Carlo method in the fixed phase approximation and the Argonne v6' interaction which includes a tensor force. Comparison of our light nuclei results to those of Green's function Monte Carlo calculations shows the accuracy of our method for both open and closed shell nuclei. We also apply it to 16O and 40Ca to show that quantum Monte Carlo methods are now applicable to larger nuclei.
Effects of pairing with isospin $T=0$ and $T=1$ are systematically studied in a model, which is based on a realistic nucleon-nucleon interaction and allows to describe the transition from infinite nuclear matter to finite nuclei. Special attention is paid to the development of the spin-orbit term in the mean field of nucleons in finite nuclei. The spin-orbit term yields a drastic suppression of $T=0$ proton-neutron pairing but does not lead to a complete disappearance in finite nuclei. Arguments are presented, why no clear evidence of $T=0$ pairing can be observed in the binding energies of fi…
The incompressibility of both nuclear matter and finite nuclei is estimated by the monopole compression modes in nuclei in the framework of a nonrelativistic Hartree-Fock-Bogoliyubov method and the coherent density fluctuation model. The monopole states originate from vibrations of the nuclear density. The calculations in the model for the incompressibility in finite nuclei are based on the Brueckner energy-density functional for nuclear matter. Results for the energies of the breathing vibrational states and finite nuclei incompressibilities are obtained for various nuclei and their values ar…
We present recent progress on the properties of antikaons in nuclei and dense nuclear matter as obtained from two {\bar K}N interaction models: one based on the lowest-order meson-baryon chiral lagrangian and the other derived from a meson-exchange picture.
Correlations and the formation of bound states (nuclei) are essential for the properties of nuclear matter in equilibrium as well as in nonequilibrium. In a quantum statistical approach, quasiparticle energies are obtained for the light elements that reflect the influence of the medium. We present analytical fits for the quasiparticle energy shifts of light nuclei that can be used in various applications. This is a prerequisite for the investigation of warm and dense matter that reproduces the nuclear statistical equilibrium and virial expansions in the low-density limit as well as relativisti…
A novel mechanism of prompt nuclear fragmentation is proposed. Assuming micro-canonical or canonical equilibrium, it is shown that a strong enhancement of the accessible phase space volume, due to the diffuceness of the nuclear surface, leads to dynamical instabilities of hot nuclei and to prompt fragmentation. Equations are derived for the transition temperature T_T, for which the thermodynamical surface tension vanishes, as well as for the thermodynamical fissility parameter chi_td.
The current status of the application of covariant density functional theory to the description of actinides and superheavy nuclei is reviewed. The achievements and open problems are discussed.
We present a new idea to understand the structure of nuclei, which is comparing to the liquid drop model. After discussing the probability that the nuclear system may be a fractal object with the characteristic of self-similarity, the nuclear irregular structure properties and the self-similarity characteristic are considered to be an intrinsic aspects of nuclear structure properties. For the description of nuclear geometric properties, nuclear fractal dimension is an irreplaceable variable similar to the nuclear radius. In order to determine these two variables, a new nuclear potential energy…
Coefficients of surface tension for even-even nuclei were estimated using its dependence of nuclear rigidity. The values of nuclear rigidity were obtained owing to its connection to mean squared deformations. The correlation of estimated surface tension coefficients with data on nuclear shapes was revealed.
A new decomposition of the Dirac structure of nucleon self-energies in the Dirac Brueckner-Hartree-Fock (DBHF) approach is adopted to investigate the equation of state for asymmetric nuclear matter. The effective coupling constants of $σ$, $ω$, $δ$ and $ρ$ mesons with a density dependence in the relativistic mean field approach are deduced by reproducing the nucleon self-energy resulting from the DBHF at each density for symmetric and asymmetric nuclear matter. With these couplings the properties of finite nuclei are investigated. The agreement of charge radii and binding energies of finite nu…
The mean field properties and equation of state for asymmetric nuclear matter are studied by using a simple effective interaction which has a single finite range Gaussian term. The study of finite nuclei with this effective interaction is done by means of constructing a quasilocal energy density functional for which the single particle equations take the form of Skryme-Hartree-Fock equations. The predictions of binding energies and charge radii of spherical nuclei are found to be compatible with the results of standard models as well as experimental data.
The sensitive correlations between the low-density halo structure and the high-density properties of the nuclear equation of state (EOS) are constructed in light kaonic nuclei with the relativistic mean-field theory. More specifically, the $1p_{1/2}$ halo spreads out linearly with increasing the pressure and sound velocity square at supra-normal densities and quadratically with decreasing the incompressibility at saturation density. These results suggest that the novel halo in light kaonic nuclei can serve as a sensitive indicator of the nuclear EOS of symmetric matter at supra-normal densitie…
A simple method is presented to evaluate the effects of short-range correlations on the momentum distribution of nucleons in nuclear matter within the framework of the Green's function approach. The method provides a very efficient representation of the single-particle Green's function for a correlated system. The reliability of this method is established by comparing its results to those obtained in more elaborate calculations. The sensitivity of the momentum distribution on the nucleon-nucleon interaction and the nuclear density is studied. The momentum distributions of nucleons in finite nu…
The success of non-relativistic quantum dynamics in accounting for the binding energies and spectra of light nuclei with masses up to A=10 raises the question whether the same dynamics applied to infinite nuclear matter agrees with the empirical saturation properties of large nuclei.The simple unambiguous relation between few-nucleon and many-nucleon Hamiltonians is directly related to the Galilean covariance of nonrelativistic dynamics. Relations between the irreducible unitary representations of the Galilei and Poincare groups indicate thatthe ``nonrelativistic'' nuclear Hamiltonians may pro…
During the last 15 years, there has been much progress in defining the nuclear Hamiltonian and applying quantum Monte Carlo methods to the calculation of light nuclei. I describe both aspects of this work and some recent results.
Effects of the density dependence of the nuclear symmetry energy on ground-state properties of superheavy nuclei are studied in the relativistic mean-field theory. It is found that the softening of the symmetry energy plays an important role in the empirical shift [Phys. Rev. C 67, 024309 (2003)] of spherical orbitals in superheavy nuclei. The calculation based on the relativistic mean-field models NL3 and FSUGold supports the double shell closure in $^{292}120$ with the softening of the symmetry energy. In addition, the significant effect of the density dependence of the symmetry energy on th…
Nuclear superfludity in exotic nuclei close to the drip lines and in the inner crust matter of neutron stars have common features which can be treated with the same theoretical tools. In the first part of my lecture I discuss how two such tools, namely the HFB approach and the linear response theory can be used to describe the pairing correlations in weakly bound nuclei, in which the unbound part of the energy spectrum becomes important. Then, using the same models, I shall discuss how the nuclear superfluidity can affect the thermal properties of the inner crust of neutron stars.
We address the connection between the saturating behavior of infinite nuclear matter and the description of finite nuclei based on state-of-the-art chiral two- and three-nucleon forces. We observe that chiral two- and three-nucleon interactions (at N2LO and at N3LO) which have been found to predict realistic binding energies and radii for a wide range of finite nuclei (from p-shell nuclei up to nickel isotopes) are unable to saturate infinite nuclear matter. On the other hand, it has been shown that, when the fits of the cD and cE couplings of the chiral three-nucleon interactions include the …
The nuclear interaction is responsible for keeping neutrons and protons joined in an atomic nucleus. Phenomenological nuclear potentials, fitted to experimental data, allow one to know about the nuclear behaviour with more or less success where quantum mechanics is hard to be used. A nuclear potential is suggested and an expression for the potential energy of two nuclear entities, either nuclei or nucleons, is developed. In order to estimate parameters in this expression, some nucleon additions to nuclei are considered and a model is suggested as a guide of the addition process. Coulomb barrie…
We present Green's function Monte Carlo calculations of spectroscopic overlaps for $A \leq 7$ nuclei. The realistic Argonne v18 two-nucleon and Illinois-7 three-nucleon interactions are used to generate the nuclear states. The overlap matrix elements are extrapolated from mixed estimates between variational Monte Carlo and Green's function Monte Carlo wave functions. The overlap functions are used to obtain spectroscopic factors and asymptotic normalization coefficients, and they can serve as an input for low-energy reaction calculations.
The neutron-proton Fermi-energy difference and the correlation to nucleon separation energies for some magic nuclei are investigated with the Skyrme energy density functionals and nuclear masses, with which the nuclear symmetry energy at sub-saturation densities is constrained from 54 Skyrme parameter sets. The extracted nuclear symmetry energy at sub-saturation density of 0.11 fm$^{-3}$ is 26.2 $\pm$ 1.0 MeV with 1.5 $σ$ uncertainty. By further combining the neutron-skin thickness of 208Pb, ten Skyrme forces with slope parameter of 28<L<65 are selected for the description of the symmetry ener…
The coherent $ω$-meson photoproduction from nuclei is proposed as a phenomenological method to evaluate the momentum dependence of $ω$-meson mass shift and width in nuclear matter. We analyze available data on un-separated coherent and incoherent $ω$-meson photoproduction from nuclei and extract the imaginary part of the the complex forward $ω{N}$ scattering amplitude, which is proportional to the in-medium $ω$-meson width. The accuracy of the currently available data is not sufficient to evaluate the real part of forward $ω{N}$ scattering amplitude and reconstruct the momentum dependence of t…
In order to simulate the relativistic effects of the Dirac Brueckner Hartree Fock approach for finite nuclei the part of the Urbana 3 nucleon (3N) force is considered, which represents the enhancement of the small components of the Dirac spinors for the nucleons in the nuclear medium. This 3N force is included in a Brueckner Hartree Fock calculation with rearrangement terms using a realistic model for the NN interaction. The strength of the 3N force is adjusted to reproduce the empirical saturation point of nuclear matter and then used in corresponding studies of the closed shell nuclei $^{16}…
The shell model Monte Carlo (SMMC) method is a powerful technique for calculating the statistical and collective properties of nuclei in the presence of correlations in model spaces that are many orders of magnitude larger than those that can be treated by conventional diagonalization methods. We review recent advances in the development and application of SMMC to mid-mass and heavy nuclei.
A modified version of the previously proposed exponential model with pairing attenuation for the well deformed even-even nuclei has been applied to predict the energy levels of doubly even actinide nuclei. Satisfactory results are obtained by that model as compared with the experimental results. The backbending phenomena are successfully described and discussed. A further comparison with the main previous models has been undertaken to confirm its validity in the heavy nuclei region.
We study the correlation between the thickness of the neutron skin in finite nuclei and the nuclear symmetry energy for isotopic chains of even-even Ni, Sn, and Pb nuclei in the framework of the deformed self-consistent mean-field Skyrme HF+BCS method. The symmetry energy, the neutron pressure and the asymmetric compressibility in finite nuclei are calculated within the coherent density fluctuation model using the symmetry energy as a function of density within the Brueckner energy-density functional. The mass dependence of the nuclear symmetry energy and the neutron skin thickness are also st…
Quantum Monte Carlo methods are powerful numerical tools to accurately solve the Schrödinger equation for nuclear systems, a necessary step to describe the structure and reactions of nuclei and nucleonic matter starting from realistic interactions and currents. These ab-initio methods have been used to accurately compute properties of light nuclei -- including their spectra, moments, and transitions -- and the equation of state of neutron and nuclear matter. In this work we review selected results obtained by combining quantum Monte Carlo methods and recent Hamiltonians constructed within chir…
The transition from cluster structures to extremely elongated ellipsoidal shapes and nuclear molecules in light $A=12-50$ $(N \sim Z)$ nuclei has been studied within the framework of covariant density functional theory. Nodal structure of the occupied single-particle states plays a critical role in microscopic understanding of this transition. This is illustrated by the analysis of dominant types of single-particle density distributions and their evolution (from the bottom of nucleonic potential) with deformation and particle number. The microscopic mechanism of the transition from clustered s…
The momentum and density dependence of mean fields in symmetric and asymmetric nuclear matter are analysed using the simple density dependent finite range effective interaction containing a single Gaussian term alongwith the zero-range terms. Within the formalism developed, it is possible to reproduce the various diverging predictions on the momentum and density dependence of isovector part of the mean field in asymmetric matter. The finite nucleus calculation is formulated for the simple Gaussian interaction in the framework of quasilocal density functional theory. The prediction of energies …
All possible dissociation cross sections for the loosely bound three-body halo nuclei $^6$He (n+n+$α$) and $^{11}$Li (n+n+$^{9}$Li) are computed as functions of target and beam energy. Both Coulomb and nuclear interactions are included in the same theoretical framework. The measurements agree with the calculations for energies above 100 Mev/nucleon. The largest cross sections correspond to final states with zero or three particles for heavy and with two neutrons for light targets.
The nuclear $α$ decay of heavy nuclei is investigated based on the nuclear energy density functional, which leads to the $α$ potential inside the parent nucleus in terms of the proton and neutron density profiles of the daughter nucleus. We use the Skyrme force model, Gogny force model, and relativistic mean field model to get the nucleon density profiles inside heavy nuclei. Once the nucleon density profiles are determined, the parameters of the nuclear $α$ potential are fitted to the observed $α$ decay half-lives of heavy nuclei. This approach is then applied to predict unknown $α$ decay hal…
We developed new parameterizations of local regularized finite-range pseudopotentials up to next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order (N3LO), used as generators of nuclear density functionals. When supplemented with zero-range spin-orbit and density-dependent terms, they provide a correct single-reference description of binding energies and radii of spherical and deformed nuclei. We compared the obtained results to experimental data and discussed benchmarks against the standard well-established Gogny D1S functional.
It is very difficult for any nuclear model to pin down the saturation property and high-density equation of state (EOS) simultaneously because of high nonlinearity of the nuclear many-body problem. In this work, we propose, for the first time, to use the special property of light kaonic nuclei to characterize the relation between saturation property and high-density EOS. With a series of relativistic mean-field models, this special property is found to be the level inversion between orbitals $2S_{1/2}$ and $1D_{5/2}$ in light kaonic nuclei. This level inversion can serve as a theoretical labor…
The symmetry energy for nuclear matter and its relation to the neutron skin in finite nuclei is discussed. The symmetry energy as a function of density obtained in a self-consistent Green function approach is presented and compared to the results of other recent theoretical approaches. A partial explanation of the linear relation between the symmetry energy and the neutron skin is proposed. The potential of several experimental methods to extract the neutron skin is examined.
The main ideas behind nuclear supersymmetry are presented, starting from the basic concepts of symmetry and the methods of group theory in physics. We propose new, more stringent experimental tests that probe the supersymmetry classification in nuclei and point out that specific correlations should exist for particle transfer intensities among supersymmetric partners. We also discuss possible ways to generalize these ideas to cases where no dynamical symmetries are present. The combination of these theoretical and experimental studies may play a unifying role in nuclear phenomena.
The dispersive optical model (DOM) is employed to simultaneously describe elastic nucleon scattering data for ${}^{40}$Ca, ${}^{48}$Ca, and ${}^{208}$Pb as well as observables related to the ground state of these nuclei, with emphasis on the charge density. Such an analysis requires a fully non-local implementation of the DOM including its imaginary component. Illustrations are provided how ingredients thus generated provide critical components for the description of the $(d,p)$ and $(e,e'p)$ reaction. For the nuclei with $N > Z$ the neutron distribution is constrained by available elastic sca…
We derive the values of nuclear symmetry energy, its components, as well as pressure in finite nuclei at saturation density from their corresponding values in nuclear matter obtained in non-relativistic Brueckner-Hartree-Fock calculations with the realistic Bonn B and Bonn CD potentials using the coherent density fluctuation model in the framework of a self-consistent Skyrme-Hartree-Fock plus BCS method. We focus on three isotopic chains of spherical nuclei (Ni, Sn, and Pb) and compare our results with those obtained with an effective Brueckner density-dependent potential. The role of the thre…
