A recent calculation of the nuclear energy density functional from chiral two- and three-nucleon forces is extended to the isovector terms pertaining to different proton and neutron densities. An improved density-matrix expansion is adapted to the situation of small isospin-asymmetries and used to calculate in the Hartree-Fock approximation the density-dependent strength functions associated with the isovector terms. The two-body interaction comprises of long-range multi-pion exchange contributions and a set of contact terms contributing up to fourth power in momenta. In addition, the leading order chiral three-nucleon interaction is employed with its parameters fixed in computations of nuclear few-body systems. With this input one finds for the asymmetry energy of nuclear matter the value $A(ρ_0) \simeq 26.5\,$MeV, compatible with existing semi-empirical determinations. The strength functions of the isovector surface and spin-orbit coupling terms come out much smaller than those of the analogous isoscalar coupling terms and in the relevant density range one finds agreement with phenomenological Skyrme forces. The specific isospin- and density-dependences arising from the chiral two- and three-nucleon interactions can be explored and tested in neutron-rich systems.
Using an energy density functional (EDF) based on the thermodynamic Gibbs-Duhem relation, found equivalent to the standard Skyrme EDF for infinite nuclear matter, it is demonstrated that the parameters of this EDF are not uniquely determined from the fit of the empirical and theoretical data related to nuclear matter. This prevents an unambiguous determination of the nucleon effective mass ($\frac{m_0^*}{m}$) and its isovector splitting ($Δm_0^*$). Complementary information from dipole polarizability of atomic nuclei helps in removing this ambiguity and plausible values of $\frac{m_0^*}{m}$ an…
A closed expression is derived for the pair vibrational correlation energy generated in the random phase approximation by the isovector pairing force in the case when Kramers and charge degenerate single-nucleon levels are uniformly distributed in an interval. The expression is used to analyze the spectral density of pair vibrational frequencies relative to that of two-quasinucleon energies. Applications to the analysis of the symmetry energy of the isovector pairing model and to a Strutinskij renormalization of this model are discussed.
We present the first lattice-QCD calculation of the nucleon isovector unpolarized parton distribution functions (PDFs) at the physical-continuum limit using Large-Momentum Effective Theory (LaMET). The lattice results are calculated using ensembles with multiple sea pion masses with the lightest one around 135~MeV, 3 lattice spacings $a\in[0.06,0.12]$~fm, and multiple volumes with $M_πL$ ranging 3.3 to 5.5. We perform a simultaneous chiral-continuum extrapolation to obtain RI/MOM renormalized nucleon matrix elements with various Wilson-link displacements in the continuum limit at physical pion…
Extending a recent suggestion for hyperon form factors to the nucleon case, dispersion theory is used to relate the low-energy vector-isovector form factors of the nucleon to the pion vector form factor. The additionally required input, i.e. the pion-nucleon scattering amplitudes are determined from relativistic next-to-leading-order (NLO) baryon chiral perturbation theory including the nucleons and optionally the Delta baryons. Two methods how to include pion rescattering are compared: (a) solving the Muskhelishvili-Omnes (MO) equation and (b) using an N/D approach. It turns out that the resu…
Analyses on possible systematics in some isovector nucleon observables in the RBC+UKQCD 2+1-flavor dynamical domain-wall fermion (DWF) lattice-QCD are presented. The vector charge, axial charge, quark momentum and helicity fractions, and transversity are discussed using mainly the Iwasaki\(\times\)DSDR ensemble at pion mass of 170 MeV. No autocorrelation issue is observed in the vector charge and quark momentum and helicity fractions. Blocked Jack-knife analyses expose significant growth of estimated error for the axial charge with increasing block sizes that are similar to or larger than the …
We investigate the application of the distillation smearing approach, and the use of the variational method with an extended basis of operators facilitated by this approach, on the calculation of the nucleon isovector charges $g_S^{u-d}$, $g_A^{u-d}$, and $g_T^{u-d}$. We find that the better sampling of the lattice enabled through the use of distillation yields a substantial reduction in the statistical uncertainty in comparison with the use of alternative smearing methods, and furthermore, appears to offer better control over the contribution of excited-states compared to use of a single, loc…
We show that the correlations generated in the ground state of $N=Z$ nuclei by the isovector and isoscalar pairing forces can be treated with high precision as a condensate of alpha-like quartets. To treat these correlations, the quartet condensation model (QCM) is extended to the treatment of spherically symmetric isovector $(T=1,J=0)$ and isoscalar $(T=0,J=1)$ pairing forces . Within QCM we discuss the competition between $T=1$ and $T=0$ pairing correlations in the case of a two-level model and for $N=Z$ nuclei with nucleons moving in the open shells above $^{16}$O, $^{40}$Ca and $^{100}$Sn.…
The theoretical approach to consideration of the Hamiltonian with pairing forces using a technique of the finite boson representation is developed. It is shown that a simultaneous description of the pairing vibrational state in $^{56}$Ni and the pairing rotational states with $T$=0 in the neighboring $N=Z$ nuclei is possible if the pairing Hamiltonian takes into account only isovector monopole pairing. However, the calculated energies of the pairing rotational states of $N=Z$ nuclei removed from $^{56}$Ni by 12 and more nucleons exceed significantly the experimental values. The possible reason…
We derive the exact $T=0$ seniority-zero eigenstates of the isovector pairing Hamiltonian for an even number of protons and neutrons. Nucleons are supposed to be distributed over a set of non-degenerate levels and to interact through a pairing force with constant strength. We show that these eigenstates (and among them, in particular, the ground state) are linear superpositions of products of $T=1$ collective pairs arranged into $T=0$ quartets. This grouping of protons and neutrons first into $T=1$ collective pairs and then into $T=0$ quartets represents the distinctive feature of these eigens…
We present results on the isovector momentum fraction, $\langle x \rangle_{u-d}$, helicity moment, $\langle x \rangle_{Δu-Δd}$, and the transversity moment, $\langle x \rangle_{δu-δd}$, of the nucleon obtained using nine ensembles of gauge configurations generated by the MILC collaboration using $2+1+1$-flavors of dynamical highly improved staggered quarks (HISQ). The correlation functions are calculated using the Wilson-Clover action and the renormalization of the three operators is carried out nonperturbatively on the lattice in the RI${}^\prime$-MOM scheme. The data have been collected at l…
We present results for the isovector electromagnetic form factors of the nucleon computed on the CLS ensembles with $N_f=2+1$ flavors of $\mathcal{O}(a)$-improved Wilson fermions and an $\mathcal{O}(a)$-improved vector current. The analysis includes ensembles with four lattice spacings and pion masses ranging from 130 MeV up to 350 MeV and mainly targets the low-$Q^2$ region. In order to remove any bias from unsuppressed excited-state contributions, we investigate several source-sink separations between 1.0 fm and 1.5 fm and apply the summation method as well as explicit two-state fits. The ch…
The nucleon-nucleon interaction arising from the exchange of three pions and the excitation of $Δ(1232)$-isobars in intermediate states is studied. Approximating the $Δ$-propagator by the inverse $Δ$N mass-splitting, analytical expressions are derived for the spectral-functions of the isoscalar and isovector central, spin-spin and tensor NN-potentials in momentum-space. A trans- lation of the spectral-functions into coordinate-space potentials reveals that the main effect of these specific exchange and excitation mechanisms is a repulsive isoscalar central NN-potential.
We present results from a lattice QCD study of nucleon matrix elements at vanishing momentum transfer for local and twist-2 isovector operator insertions. Computations are performed on gauge ensembles with non-perturbatively improved $N_f=2+1$ Wilson fermions, covering four values of the lattice spacing and pion masses down to $M_π\approx200$MeV. Several source-sink separations (typically ~1.0fm to ~1.5fm) allow us to assess excited-state contamination. Results on individual ensembles are obtained from simultaneous two-state fits across all observables and all available source-sink separations…
From a Bayesian analysis of the electric dipole polarizability, the constrained energy of isovector giant dipole resonance, the peak energy of isocalar giant quadrupole resonance and the constrained energy of isocalar giant monopole resonance in $^{208}$Pb, we extract the isoscalar and isovector effective masses in nuclear matter at saturation density $ρ_0$ as $m_{s,0}^{\ast}/m=0.87_{-0.04}^{+0.04}$ and $m_{v,0}^{\ast}/m = 0.78_{-0.05}^{+0.06}$ at $90\%$ confidence level. The obtained constraints on $m_{s,0}^{\ast}$ and $m_{v,0}^{\ast}$ lead to a positive isospin splitting of nucleon effective…
The microscopic mechanisms of the symmetry energy in nuclear matter are investigated in the framework of the relativistic Brueckner-Hartree-Fock (RBHF) model with a high-precision realistic nuclear potential, pvCDBonn A. The kinetic energy and potential contributions to symmetry energy are decomposed. They are explicitly expressed by the nucleon self-energies, which are obtained through projecting the $G$-matrices from the RBHF model into the terms of Lorentz covariants. The nuclear medium effects on the nucleon self-energy and nucleon-nucleon interaction in symmetry energy are discussed by co…
We employ a variational method, in the framework of the Thomas-Fermi approximation, to study the effect of the symmetry energy on the neutron skin thickness and the symmetry energy coefficients of various neutron rich nuclei. We concentrate our interest on $^{208}$Pb, $^{124}$Sn, $^{90}$Zr, and $^{48}$Ca, although the method can be applied in the totality of medium and heavy neutron rich nuclei. Our approach has the advantage that the isospin asymmetry function $α(r)$, which is the key quantity to calculate isovector properties of various nuclei, is directly related with the symmetry energy as…
Using the dcQMD transport model, the isoscalar and isovector in-medium potentials of the $Δ$(1232) baryon are studied and information regarding their effective strength is obtained from a comparison to experimental pion production data in heavy-ion collisions below 800 MeV/nucleon impact energy. The best description is achieved for an isoscalar potential moderately more attractive than the nucleon optical potential and a rather small isoscalar relative effective mass m$^*_Δ\approx$ 0.45. For the isovector component only a constraint between the potential's strength at saturation and the isovec…
Various kinds of isovector nucleon effective masses are used in the literature to characterize the momentum/energy dependence of the nucleon symmetry potential or self-energy due to the space/time non-locality of the underlying isovector strong interaction in neutron-rich nucleonic matter. The multifaceted studies on nucleon isovector effective masses are multi-disciplinary in nature. Besides structures, masses and low-lying excited states of nuclei as well as nuclear reactions, studies of the isospin dependence of short-range correlations in nuclei from scatterings of high-energy electrons an…
We propose a particle number conserving formalism for the treatment of isovector-isoscalar pairing in nuclei with $N>Z$. The ground state of the pairing Hamiltonian is described by a quartet condensate to which is appended a pair condensate formed by the neutrons in excess. The quartets are built by two isovector pairs coupled to the total isospin $T=0$ and two collective isoscalar proton-neutron pairs. To probe this ansatz for the ground state we performed calculations for $N>Z$ nuclei with the valence nucleons moving above the cores $^{16}$O, $^{40}$Ca and $^{100}$Sn. The calculations are do…
To obtain an understanding of the structure and reactions of nuclear systems from first principles has been a long-standing goal of nuclear physics. In this respect, few- and many-body systems provide a unique laboratory for studying nuclear interactions. During the past decades, the development of accurate representations of the nuclear force has undergone substantial progress. Particular emphasis has been devoted to chiral effective field theory (EFT), a low-energy effective representation of quantum chromodynamics (QCD). Within chiral EFT, many studies have been carried out dealing with the…
We put a stringent constraint on the isovector nuclear interactions in the Skyrme-Hartree-Fock model from the centroid energy $E_{-1}$ of the isovector giant dipole resonance in $^{208}$Pb as well as its electric polarizability $α_D$. Using the Bayesian analysis method, $E_{-1}$ and $α_D$ are found to be mostly determined by the nuclear symmetry energy $E_{sym}$ at about $ρ^\star=0.05$ fm$^{-3}$ and the isovector nucleon effective mass $m_v^\star$ at the saturation density. At $90\%$ confidence level, we obtain $E_{sym}(ρ^\star) = 16.4 ^{+1.0}_{-0.9}$ MeV and $m_v^\star/m = 0.79 ^{+0.06}_{-0.0…
Radiative corrections to the nucleon isovector $g_V$ and $g_A$
Institute of Theoretical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院理论物理研究所）；University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学）；Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, UCAS（中国科学院大学杭州高等研究院）；International Centre for Theoretical Physics Asia-Pacific（亚太理论物理中心）
We have studied the isoscalar giant quadruple resonance (ISGQR) and the isovector giant dipole resonance (IVGDR) in $^{208}$Pb based on an improved isospin-dependent Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck transport approach using an improved isospin- and momentum-dependent interaction. With the isoscalar nucleon effective mass and the nucleon-nucleon cross section which reproduces respectively the excitation energy and the width of the ISGQR strength function, the slope parameter of the symmetry energy and the neutron-proton effective mass splitting are constrained respectively within $36<L<62$ MeV and $…
