On the problem of rearrangement energy of nuclear matter

Abstract

The rearrangement energy of the nuclear many-body problem, which is important in the processes of separation, scattering and excitation of a particle, is investigated. To discuss the physical meaning of this quantity, a general definition, independent of perturbation theory, is given. The “model dependence” and other important properties can then be discussed in detail. Starting from this general formulations expressions for the rearrangement energy in the Brueckner two-particle approximation are derived, and the question of how the rearrangement energy can be determined experimentally is discussed.