High-spin states in ${}^{160,161}\mathrm{Tm}$ were populated using the ${}^{128}\mathrm{Te}$(${}^{37}\mathrm{Cl}$, $5n$ and $4n$) reactions at a beam energy of 170  MeV. Emitted γ rays were detected in the Gammasphere spectrometer. Two rotational bands with high moments of inertia were discovered, one assigned to ${}^{160}\mathrm{Tm}$, while the other tentatively assigned to ${}^{161}\mathrm{Tm}$. These sequences display features similar to bands observed in neighboring Er, Tm, Yb, and Lu nuclei which have been discussed in terms of triaxial strongly deformed structures. Cranked Nilsson Strutinsky calculations have been performed that predict well-deformed triaxial shapes at high spin in ${}^{160,161}\mathrm{Tm}$.

Differential cross sections of the photo- and electroproduction of the hypertriton have been calculated by utilizing modern nuclear wave functions and the elementary operator of KAON-MAID. It is found that a proper treatment of Fermi motion is essential for the two processes. Whereas the average momentum approximation can partly simulate the Fermi motion in the process, the “frozen nucleon” assumption yields very different results, especially at lower energies. The Coulomb effect induced by the interaction between the positively charged kaon and the hypertriton is found to be negligible. The influence of higher partial waves is also found to be relatively small, in contrast to the finding of the previous work. Electroproduction is found to be much more sensitive to the off-shell assumption than is photoproduction. It is shown that the few available experimental data favor the assumption that the initial nucleon is off-shell and the final hyperon is on-shell. This seems to be reasonable, since the hyperon in the hypertriton is less bound than the nucleon in the initial ${}^3\mathrm{He}$ nucleus. The effect of the missing resonance $D_{13}(1895)$ is more profound in the longitudinal cross sections. Excluding this resonance reduces the longitudinal cross sections by one order of magnitude but does not change the effects of various off-shell assumptions on the cross sections.

The self-consistent relativistic quasiparticle random-phase approximation (RQRPA) is extended by the quasiparticle-phonon coupling (QPC) model using the quasiparticle time blocking approximation (QTBA). The method is formulated in terms of the Bethe-Salpeter equation (BSE) in the two-quasiparticle space with an energy-dependent two-quasiparticle residual interaction. This equation is solved either in the basis of Dirac states forming the self-consistent solution of the ground state or in the momentum representation. Pairing correlations are treated within the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) model with a monopole-monopole interaction. The same NL3 set of the coupling constants generates the Dirac-Hartree-BCS single-quasiparticle spectrum, the static part of the residual two-quasiparticle interaction and the quasiparticle-phonon coupling amplitudes. A quantitative description of electric dipole excitations in the chain of tin isotopes ($Z=50$) with the mass numbers $A=100,106,114,116,120$, and 130 and in the chain of isotones with ($N=50$) ${}^{88}\mathrm{Sr}$, ${}^{90}\mathrm{Zr}$, ${}^{92}\mathrm{Mo}$ is performed within this framework. The RQRPA extended by the coupling to collective vibrations generates spectra with a multitude of $2q\otimes \mathrm{phonon}$ (two quasiparticles plus phonon) states providing a noticeable fragmentation of the giant dipole resonance as well as of the soft dipole mode (pygmy resonance) in the nuclei under investigation. The results obtained for the photo absorption cross sections and for the integrated contributions of the low-lying strength to the calculated dipole spectra agree very well with the available experimental data.

The higher spin levels in neutron-rich ${}^{104}\mathrm{Nb}$ have been investigated from a study of the prompt γ rays in spontaneous fission of ${}^{252}\mathrm{Cf}$ with the Gammasphere detector array. A new collective band has been identified for the first time. This band is proposed as a semidecoupled band based on the configuration $\pi 5/2^{-}[303]\otimes \nu 1/2^{-}[541]$. The other structural characteristics are discussed.

The ${}^{15}\mathrm{N}(p,\gamma ){}^{16}\mathrm{O}$ reaction provides a path from the CN cycle to the CNO bi-cycle and CNO tri-cycle. The measured astrophysical factor for this reaction is dominated by resonant capture through two strong $J^{\pi }=1^{-}$ resonances at $E_R=312$ and 962 keV and direct capture to the ground state. Asymptotic normalization coefficients (ANCs) for the ground and seven excited states in ${}^{16}\mathrm{O}$ were extracted from the comparison of experimental differential cross sections for the ${}^{15}\mathrm{N}$(${}^3\mathrm{He}$,$d)$${}^{16}\mathrm{O}$ reaction with distorted-wave Born approximation calculations. Using these ANCs and proton and α resonance widths determined from an $R$-matrix fit to the data from the ${}^{15}\mathrm{N}(p,\alpha ){}^{12}\mathrm{C}$ reaction, we carried out an $R$-matrix calculation to obtain the astrophysical factor for the ${}^{15}\mathrm{N}(p,\gamma ){}^{16}\mathrm{O}$ reaction. The results indicate that the direct capture contribution was previously overestimated. We find the astrophysical factor to be $S(0)=36.0\pm 6.0$ keV b, which is about a factor of 2 lower than the presently accepted value. We conclude that for every $2200\pm 300$ cycles of the main CN cycle one CN catalyst is lost due to this reaction.

We investigate the effect of microscopic three-body forces on the ${}^3\mathit{P}$ ${\mathit{F}}_2$ neutron superfluidity in neutron matter, β-stable neutron star matter, and neutron stars by using the BCS theory and the Brueckner-Hartree-Fock approach. We adopt the Argonne V18 potential supplemented with a microscopic three-body force as the realistic nucleon-nucleon interaction. We have concentrated on studying the three-body force effect on the ${}^3\mathit{P}$ ${\mathit{F}}_2$ neutron pairing gap. It is found that the three-body force effect considerably enhances the ${}^3\mathit{P}$ ${\mathit{F}}_2$ neutron superfluidity in neutron star matter and neutron stars.

The pion polarizability functions are structure functions of pion Compton scattering. They can be assessed in high-energy pion-nucleus bremsstrahlung reactions, ${\pi }^{-}+A\to {\pi }^{-}+\gamma +A$. We present numerical expectations for pion-nucleus bremsstrahlung cross sections in the Coulomb region, i.e., the small-angle region where the nuclear scattering is dominated by the Coulomb interaction. We investigate the prospects of measuring the polarizability functions for pion-Compton center-of-momentum energies from threshold up to 1 GeV. A meson-exchange model is used for the pion Compton amplitude.

Averaged over ensemble of initial conditions kinetic transport equations of weakly coupled systems of quarks and gluons are derived. These equations account for the correlators of fluctuations of particles and classical gluon fields. The isotropization of particle momenta by field fluctuations at the early prethermal stage of matter evolution in ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions is discussed. Our results can be useful for understanding under what conditions isotropization of the quark-gluon plasma in ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions can be reached within phenomenologically observed time scales.

Recent measurements of the reaction ${}^2\mathrm{H}$$(d,p)$${}^3\mathrm{H}$ in metallic environments at very low energies performed by different experimental groups point to an enhanced electron screening effect. However, the resulting screening energies differ strongly for diverse host metals and different experiments. Here, we present new experimental results and investigations of interfering processes in the irradiated targets. These measurements inside metals set special challenges and pitfalls that make them and the data analysis particularly error prone. There are multiparameter collateral effects that are crucial for the correct interpretation of the observed experimental yields. They mainly originate from target surface contaminations owing to residual gases in the vacuum as well as from inhomogeneities and instabilities in the deuteron density distribution in the targets. To address these problems an improved differential analysis method beyond the standard procedures has been implemented. Profound scrutiny of the other experiments demonstrates that the observed unusual changes in the reaction yields are mainly due to deuteron density dynamics simulating the alleged screening energy values. The experimental results are compared with different theoretical models of the electron screening in metals. The Debye-Hückel model that has been previously proposed to explain the influence of the electron screening on both nuclear reactions and radioactive decays can be clearly excluded.

We report on new H$(e,e^{\text{'}}p)\gamma$ measurements in the $\Delta (1232)$ resonance at $Q^2=0.06$ (GeV/$c$)${}^2$ carried out simultaneously with H$(e,e^{\text{'}}p){\pi }^0$. It is the lowest $Q^2$ for which the virtual Compton scattering (VCS) reaction has been studied in the first resonance region. The VCS measured cross sections are well described by dispersion-relation calculations in which the multipole amplitudes derived from H$(e,e^{\text{'}}p){\pi }^0$ data are used as input, thus confirming the compatibility of the results. The derived resonant magnetic dipole amplitude $M_{1+}^{3/2}=(40.60\pm 0.{70}_{\mathrm{stat}+\mathrm{sys}})({10}^{-3}/m_{{\pi }^{+}})$ at $W=1232$ MeV is in excellent agreement with the value extracted from H$(e,e^{\text{'}}p){\pi }^0$ measurements.

The masses of neutron-deficient nuclides near the $N=Z$ line with $A=64\text{−}80$ have been determined using a direct time-of-flight technique which employed a cyclotron as a high-resolution spectrometer. The measured atomic masses for ${}^{68}\mathrm{Se}$ and ${}^{80}\mathrm{Y}$ were 67.9421(3) u and 79.9344(2) u, respectively. The new values agree with the 2003 Atomic Mass Evaluation. The result for ${}^{68}\mathrm{Se}$ confirms that this nucleus is a waiting point of the rp-process, and that for ${}^{80}\mathrm{Y}$ resolves the conflict between earlier measurements. Using the present results and the 2003 Atomic Mass Evaluation compilation, the empirical interaction between the last proton and the last neutron in $N=Z$ nuclei has been revisited and extended.

Hydrodynamics supplied with single-freeze-out statistical hadronization is used to describe the midrapidity hadron production in relativistic heavy-ion collisions at the highest RHIC energies ($\sqrt{s_{\mathit{NN}}}=200\hspace{0.5em}\mathrm{GeV}$) and, by means of a simple extrapolation to higher multiplicities, to make predictions for the LHC ($\sqrt{s_{\mathit{NN}}}=5.5\hspace{0.5em}\mathrm{TeV}$). Thermodynamic properties of the high-temperature strongly-interacting quark-gluon plasma are taken from lattice simulations, at low temperatures the hadron-gas equation of state is used, while in the cross-over region an interpolation between the two equations of state is constructed. Boost invariance is assumed for the midrapidity calculations. The initial condition for hydrodynamics is obtained from a Glauber profile for the entropy, with the initial central temperature $T_i$. The conditions obtained from the hydrodynamic expansion at the freeze-out temperature $T_f$ are used as input for the thermal event generator THERMINATOR, which accounts for a complete treatment of hadronic resonances. Basic physical observables are obtained: the transverse-momentum spectra, the elliptic flow coefficient $v_2$, and the HBT radii. The femtoscopic observables are evaluated with the help of the two-particle method which accounts for the resonance decays and Coulomb final-state interactions. The problem of a simultaneous description of all discussed observables is addressed, with the conclusion that at the highest RHIC energies our approach gives a quite satisfactory global description of soft hadronic observables, which agree with the data at the level of 10–15%. Some discrepancies may be attributed to uncertainties in the components of the model or to the absence of the final-state elastic interactions among hadrons. Extrapolating $T_i$ to higher values allows for the consideration of the results characterized by higher multiplicities. We interpret these results as predictions for possible behavior of soft hadronic data at the LHC. We test $T_i=400,450$, and 500 MeV, and observe the expected increase of the flow, resulting in smaller slopes of the $p_T$-spectra. The elliptic flow of pions exhibits saturation, with $v_2$ remaining practically constant, while the HBT radii increase moderately with $T_i$.

The high spin excited states of neutron-rich nuclei ${}^{159}\mathrm{Sm}$ and ${}^{89,91}\mathrm{Kr}$ are identified for the first time from the spontaneous fission of ${}^{252}\mathrm{Cf}$. Six excited states and six γ transitions in ${}^{159}\mathrm{Sm}$ are reported here for the first time. Five and two new γ transitions are identified in ${}^{89}\mathrm{Kr}$ and ${}^{91}\mathrm{Kr}$, respectively. Level schemes in ${}^{89,91}\mathrm{Kr}$ are interpreted as the ${2d}_{5/2}$ neutron hole configuration weakly coupled to the neighboring even-even Kr nuclei. A possible yrast spin sequence of $11/2^{-}\text{−}9/2^{+}\text{−}5/2^{+}$ is suggested in ${}^{89}\mathrm{Kr}$. A rotational band with the proposed configuration of $\nu 5/2[523]$ is observed in ${}^{159}\mathrm{Sm}$.

Decoupling via the similarity renormalization group (SRG) of low-energy nuclear physics from high-energy details of the nucleon-nucleon interaction is examined for two-body observables and few-body binding energies. The universal nature of this decoupling is illustrated and errors from suppressing high-momentum modes above the decoupling scale are shown to be perturbatively small.

The atomic electric dipole moment (EDM) currently searched by a number of experimental groups requires that both parity and time-reversal invariance be violated. According to current theoretical understanding, the EDM is induced by the nuclear Schiff moment. The enhancement of the Schiff moment by the combination of static quadrupole and octupole deformation was predicted earlier. Here we study a further idea of the possible enhancement in the absence of static deformation but in a nuclear system with soft collective vibrations of two types. Both analytical approximation and numerical solution of the simplified problem confirm the presence of the enhancement. We discuss related aspects of nuclear structure which should be studied beyond mean-field and random phase approximations.

High transverse momentum ($p_T$) single nonphotonic electrons which have been measured in the RHIC experiments come dominantly from heavy meson decay. The ratio of their $p_T$ spectra in $\mathit{pp}$ and $\mathit{AA}$ collisions [$R_{\mathit{AA}}(p_T)$] reveals the energy loss of heavy quarks in the environment created by $\mathit{AA}$ collisions. Using a fixed coupling constant and the Debye mass ($m_D\approx \mathit{gT}$) as the infrared regulator, perturbative QCD (pQCD) calculations are not able to reproduce the data, neither the energy loss nor the azimuthal $(v_2)$ distribution. Employing a running coupling constant and replacing the Debye mass by a more realistic hard thermal loop (HTL) calculation, we find a substantial increase in the collisional energy loss, which brings the $v_2(p_T)$ distribution as well as $R_{\mathit{AA}}(p_T)$ to values close to the experimental ones without excluding a contribution from radiative energy loss.

On the basis of the kinetic equation with self-consistent relativistic mean fields acting on baryons and antibaryons, we study dynamical response of the nucleus to an antiproton implanted in its interior. By solving numerically the time-dependent Vlasov equation, we show that the compressed state is formed on a rather short time scale of about 4–10 fm/c. This justifies the assumption, that the antiproton annihilation may happen in the compressed nuclear environment. The evolution of the nucleus after antiproton annihilation is described by the same kinetic equation including collision terms. We show, that nucleon kinetic energy spectra and the total invariant mass distributions of produced mesons are quite sensitive observables to the antiproton annihilation in the compressed nucleus.

Using different parametrizations of the nuclear mass formula, we study the sensitivity of the isoscaling parameters to the mass formula employed in grand-canonical calculations. Previous works on isoscaling have suggested that the symmetry energy implied in such calculations is anomalously smaller than that suggested by fits to nuclear masses. We show that surface corrections to the symmetry energy naturally broadens the isotopic distribution thus allowing for values of the symmetry energy which more closely match those obtained from nuclear masses.

We present a relativistic chiral effective theory for symmetric and asymmetric nuclear matter taken in the Hartree-Fock scheme. The nuclear binding is ensured by a background chiral invariant scalar field associated with the radial fluctuations of the chiral quark condensate. Nuclear matter saturation is obtained once the scalar response of the nucleon-generating three-body repulsive forces is incorporated. For those parameters related to the scalar sector and quark confinement mechanism inside the nucleon we make use of an analysis of lattice results on nucleon mass evolution with quark mass. The other parameters are constrained as much as possible by standard hadron and nuclear phenomenology. Special attention is paid to the treatment of the propagation of the scalar fluctuations. The rearrangement terms associated with in-medium modified mass and coupling constants are explicitly included to satisfy the Hugenholtz-Van Hove theorem. We point out the important role of the tensor piece of the rho exchange Fock term to reproduce the asymmetry energy of nuclear matter. We also discuss the isospin dependence of the Landau nucleon effective mass.