Symmetry energy of nuclear matter in relativistic Hartree-Fock theory

Abstract

Several topics on the symmetry energy of nuclear matter in relativistic Hartree-Fock theory are reviewed. General formulism of the newly developed density-dependent relativistic Hartree-Fock theory for hadronic matter is presented briefly. The effects of Fock terms on the nuclear symmetry energy are reviewed in detail from three aspects: the extra enhancement from the Fock terms of the isoscalar meson-nucleon coupling channels, the extra hyperon-induced suppression effect originating from the Fock channel, self-consistent tensor effects embedded automatically in the Fock diagrams. The naturally involved tensor force components in the Fock diagrams soften the density-dependent behavior of the symmetry energy and consequently lead neutron stars to be more compact. Finally, the error estimates of theoretical models are performed by doing a variation procedure, and possible ways to improve the relativistic Hartree-Fock models are discussed.