Abstract
Nuclear level densities are necessary input to the Hauser-Feshbach theory of compound nuclear reactions. However, the microscopic calculation of level densities in the presence of correlations is a challenging many-body problem. The configurationinteraction shell model provides a suitable framework for the inclusion of correlations and shell effects, but the large dimensionality of the many-particle model space has limited its application in heavy nuclei. The shell model Monte Carlo method enables calculations in spaces that are many orders of magnitude larger than spaces that can be treated by conventional diagonalization methods and has proven to be a powerful tool in the microscopic calculation of level densities. We discuss recent applications of the method in heavy nuclei.
Highlights
Level densities play an important role in the Hauser-Feshbach theory [1] of compound nuclear reactions, but are not always accessible by direct measurements
The configuration-interaction (CI) shell model approach accounts for correlations, but conventional diagonalization methods are limited to spaces of dimensionality ∼ 1011
The auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo method, known in nuclear physics as the shell model Monte Carlo (SMMC) method [3,4,5,6], enables microscopic calculations in spaces that are many orders of magnitude larger (e.g., ∼ 1030 in recent applications to rare-earth nuclei) than those that can be treated by conventional methods
Summary
Level densities play an important role in the Hauser-Feshbach theory [1] of compound nuclear reactions, but are not always accessible by direct measurements. The configuration-interaction (CI) shell model approach accounts for correlations, but conventional diagonalization methods are limited to spaces of dimensionality ∼ 1011. The auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo method, known in nuclear physics as the shell model Monte Carlo (SMMC) method [3,4,5,6], enables microscopic calculations in spaces that are many orders of magnitude larger (e.g., ∼ 1030 in recent applications to rare-earth nuclei) than those that can be treated by conventional methods. Deformation is an important concept for understanding heavy nuclei but it is usually introduced in a mean-field approximation that breaks rotational symmetry.
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