In-medium modification of the eta mass is discussed in the context of partial restoration of chiral symmetry in nuclear medium. We emphasize that the U_A(1) anomaly effects causes the eta-eta mass difference necessarily through the chiral symmetry breaking. As a consequence, the eta mass is expected to be reduced by order of 100 MeV in nuclear matter where about 30% reduction of chiral symmetry takes place. The strong attraction relating to the eta mass generation eventually implies that there should be also a strong attractive interaction in the scalar channel of the eta-N two-body system. We find that the attraction can be strong enough to form a bound state.
We shed light upon the eta mass in nuclear matter in the context of partial restoration of chiral symmetry, pointing out that the U_{A}(1) anomaly effects causes the eta-eta mass difference necessarily through the chiral symmetry breaking. As a consequence, it is expected that the eta mass is reduced by order of 100 MeV in nuclear matter where partial restoration of chiral symmetry takes place. The discussion given here is based on Ref. [1].
The partial restoration of chiral symmetry in nuclear medium is investigated in a model independent way by exploiting operator relations in QCD. An exact sum rule is derived for the quark condensate valid for all density. This sum rule is simplified at low density to a new relation with the in-medium quark condensate <bar{q}q>*, in-medium pion decay constant F_{pi}^t and in-medium pion wave-function renormalization Z_{pi}*. Calculating Z_{pi}*at low density from the iso-scalar pion-nucleon scattering data and relating F_{pi}^t to the isovector pion-nucleus scattering length b_1^*, it is concluded that the enhanced repulsion of the s-wave isovector pion-nucleus interaction observed in the deeply bound pionic atoms directly implies the reduction of the in-medium quark condensate. The knowledge of the in-medium pion mass m_{pi}* is not necessary to reach this conclusion.
Exploiting operator relations in QCD, we derive a novel and model-independent formula relating the in-medium quark condensate <bar-q q>* to the decay constant F*_t and the wave function renormalization constant Z* of the pion in the nuclear medium. Evaluating Z* at low density from the iso-scalar pion-nucleon scattering data, it is concluded that the enhanced repulsion of the s-wave isovector pion-nucleusinteraction observed in the deeply bound pionic atoms implies directly the reduction of the in-medium quark condensate. The knowlege of the in-medium pion mass is not necessary to reach this conclusion.
We calculate the mass of the vector meson in the chiral symmetry restored vacuum. This is accomplished by separating the four quark operators appearing in the vector and axial vector meson sum rules into chiral symmetric and symmetry breaking parts depending on the contribution of the fermion zero modes. We then identify each part from the fit to the vector and axial vector meson masses. By taking the chiral symmetry breaking part to be zero while keeping the symmetric operator to the vacuum value, we find that the chiral symmetric part of the vector and axial vector meson mass to be between 550 and 600 MeV. This demonstrates that chiral symmetry breaking, while responsible for the mass difference between chiral partner, accounts only for a small fraction of the symmetric part of the mass.
We discuss the effect of changes in meson properties in a nuclear medium on physical observables, notably, $J/Psi$ dissociation on pion and $rho$ meson comovers in relativistic heavy ion collisions, and the prediction of the $omega$-, $eta$- and $eta$-nuclear bound states.