In the realm of nuclear physics, a team of researchers from the Institute of Modern Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences has made significant strides in understanding the forces that govern atomic nuclei. The team, comprising Rongzhe Hu, Jianguo Li, Siqin Fan, and Furong Xu, has focused on the intricate dance of three-nucleon forces (3NF) within nuclei, which play a crucial role in determining the structure of finite nuclei and the properties of infinite nuclear matter.
The researchers have constructed new models of three-nucleon forces that are compatible with a recently developed two-nucleon potential, which is defined in a local position-space framework. This approach allows for more straightforward calculations and better physical intuition compared to nonlocal momentum-space potentials. The team has successfully applied these models to calculate the binding energies and radii of nuclei ranging from helium-4 to tin-132.
To ensure the accuracy of their models, the researchers constrained two low-energy constants of the three-nucleon force using the ground-state energies of tritium (^3H) and oxygen-16 (^16O). This method, suggested in a recent study, helped them achieve a more precise description of nuclear forces. The team found that their chiral Hamiltonian, which incorporates both local and nonlocal regulators, could simultaneously reproduce the experimental ground-state energies and charge radii of nuclei across a wide range.
The practical applications of this research for the energy sector, particularly nuclear energy, are significant. A deeper understanding of nuclear forces can lead to more accurate models of nuclear reactions, which are essential for designing and optimizing nuclear reactors. Additionally, this research can contribute to the development of advanced nuclear fuels and the improvement of nuclear waste management strategies. The findings of this study were published in the journal Physical Review C.
This article is based on research available at arXiv.