Neutron Skin of {sup 208}Pb, Nuclear Symmetry Energy, and the Parity Radius Experiment

Journal Article · Fri Jun 24 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVLETT.106.252501· OSTI ID:21567480

Roca-Maza, X ^[1]; Centelles, M; Vinas, X ^[1]; Warda, M ^[2]

---

1. Departament d'Estructura i Constituents de la Materia and Institut de Ciencies del Cosmos, Facultat de Fisica, Universitat de Barcelona, Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain)
2. Katedra Fizyki Teoretycznej, Uniwersytet Marii Curie-Sklodowskiej, ul. Radziszewskiego 10, 20-031 Lublin (Poland)

A precise determination of the neutron skin {Delta}r{sub np} of a heavy nucleus sets a basic constraint on the nuclear symmetry energy ({Delta}r{sub np} is the difference of the neutron and proton rms radii of the nucleus). The parity radius experiment (PREX) may achieve it by electroweak parity-violating electron scattering (PVES) on {sup 208}Pb. We investigate PVES in nuclear mean field approach to allow the accurate extraction of {Delta}r{sub np} of {sup 208}Pb from the parity-violating asymmetry A{sub PV} probed in the experiment. We demonstrate a high linear correlation between A{sub PV} and {Delta}r{sub np} in successful mean field forces as the best means to constrain the neutron skin of {sup 208}Pb from PREX, without assumptions on the neutron density shape. Continuation of the experiment with higher precision in A{sub PV} is motivated since the present method can support it to constrain the density slope of the nuclear symmetry energy to new accuracy.

• OSTI ID: 21567480
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 106, Issue 25; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.106.252501; (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0031-9007
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS
ACCURACY
ASYMMETRY
CORRELATIONS
DENSITY
ELECTRONS
LEAD 208
MEAN-FIELD THEORY
NEUTRON DENSITY
NEUTRONS
PARITY
PROTONS
SCATTERING
SYMMETRY
BARYONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
FERMIONS
HADRONS
HEAVY NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
LEAD ISOTOPES
LEPTONS
NUCLEI
NUCLEONS
PARTICLE PROPERTIES
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
STABLE ISOTOPES