Properties of N=90 Isotones within the Mean Field Perspective

In recent years, the N=90 isotones have been investigated to a large extent in relation to studies of quantum phase transitions. In this paper, we use the mean field approach with pairing-deformation self consistent Total Routhian Surface (TRS) calculations to study the N=90 isotones and neigh- bouring nuclei. The important probes, such as moments of inertia, quadrupole moments, the energy ratio of E(4+1)/E(2+1), octupole and hexadecapole degrees of freedom are considered and the cal- culated results are compared with the available experimental data. From a microscopic point of view, the N=90 isotones characterize the onset of the deformed region and are very well described by mean field calculations. The results are compared with those from other studies in beyond mean-field approximations. Shape coexistence phenomena in the region of interest are discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figure

Exotic nuclear phases in the inner crust of neutron stars in the light of Skyrme-Hartree-Fock theory

The bottom part of the neutron star crust is investigated using the Skyrme-Hartree-Fock approach with the Coulomb interaction treated beyond the Wigner-Seitz approximation. A variety of nuclear phases is found to coexist in this region. Their stability and relative energies are governed by the Coulomb, surface and shell energies. We have also found that a substantial contribution is coming from the spin-orbit interaction.Comment: 4 pages, 1 eps figure, Talk at the 17th Nuclear Physics Divisional Conference of the EPS: Nuclear Physics in Astrophysics, Debrecen, Hungary, Sept. 30 - Oct. 4, 200

Quantum fluctuations and stability of tetrahedral deformations in atomic nuclei

The possible existence of stable axial octupole and tetrahedral deformations is investigated in $^{80}$Zr and $^{98}$Zr. HFBCS calculations with parity projection have been performed for various parametrizations of the Skyrme energy functional. The correlation and excitation energies of negative parity states associated with shape fluctuations have been obtained using the generator coordinate method (GCM). The results indicate that in these nuclei both the axial octupole and tetrahedral deformations are of dynamic character and possess similar characteristics. Various Skyrme forces give consistent results as a function of these two octupole degrees of freedom both at the mean-field level as well as for configuration mixing calculations.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, submitted to IJMP

GCM study of hexadecapole correlations in superdeformed 194^{194}Hg

The role of hexadecapole correlations in the lowest superdeformed band of $^{194}$Hg is studied by self consistent mean field methods. The generator coordinate method with particle number projection has been applied using Hartree-Fock wave functions defined along three different hexadecapole paths. In all cases, the ground state is not significantly affected by hexadecapole correlations and the energies of the corresponding first excited hexadecapole vibrational states lie high in energy. The effect of rotation is investigated with the Skyrme-Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov method and a zero range density-dependent pairing interaction.Comment: REVTeX file, 10 pages, 3 figures (available as postscript files upon request to [email protected]), submitted to Phys. Rev.

Neutron stars and the fermionic Casimir effect

The inner crust of neutron stars consists of nuclei of various shapes immersed in a neutron gas and stabilized by the Coulomb interaction in the form of a crystal lattice. The scattering of neutrons on nuclear inhomegeneities leads to the quantum correction to the total energy of the system. This correction resembles the Casimir energy and turns out to have a large influence on the structure of the crust.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, presented at the Fifth Workshop on Quantum Field Theory under the Influence of External Conditions, Leipzig, Germany, September 10-15, 2001, to appear in Int. J. Mod. Phys.

Unexpected goings-on in the structure of a neutron star crust

We present a brief account of two phenomena taking place in a neutron star crust: the Fermionic Casimir effect and the major density depletion of the cores of the superfluid neutron vortices.Comment: 6 pages, invited talk presented by AB at Tours 2003 Symposium on Nuclear Physics, August 26-29,Tours, Franc

Induced fission of 240Pu

We study the fission dynamics of 240Pu within an implementation of the Density Functional Theory (DFT) extended to superfluid systems and real-time dynamics. We demonstrate the critical role played by the pairing correlations. The evolution is found to be much slower than previously expected in this fully non-adiabatic treatment of nuclear dynamics, where there are no symmetry restrictions and all collective degrees of freedom (CDOF) are allowed to participate in the dynamics.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, talk given at The 6th International Conference on Fission and Properties of Neutron-Rich Nuclei, Sanibel Island, Florida, November 6-2 (2016