We show that the notion of partial dynamical symmetry is robust and founded on a microscopic many-body theory of nuclei. Based on the universal energy density functional framework, a general quantal boson Hamiltonian is derived and shown to have essentially the same spectroscopic character as that predicted by the partial SU(3) symmetry. The principal conclusion holds in two representative classes of energy density functionals: nonrelativistic and relativistic. The analysis is illustrated in application to the axially-deformed nucleus $^{168}$Er.
The relativistic density functional with minimal density dependent nucleon-meson couplings for nuclei and nuclear matter is extended to include tensor couplings of the nucleons to the vector mesons. The dependence of the minimal couplings on either vector or scalar densities is explored. New parametrisations are obtained by a fit to nuclear observables with uncertainties that are determined self-consistently. The corresponding nuclear matter parameters at saturation are determined including their uncertainties. An improvement in the description of nuclear observables, in particular for binding energies and diffraction radii, is found when tensor couplings are considered, accompanied by an increase of the Dirac effective mass. The equations of state for symmetric nuclear matter and pure neutron matter are studied for all models. The density dependence of the nuclear symmetry energy, the Dirac effective masses and scalar densities is explored. Problems at high densities for parametrisations using a scalar density dependence of the couplings are identified due to the rearrangement contributions in the scalar self-energies that lead to vanishing Dirac effective masses.
The Coulomb exchange and correlation energy density functionals for electron systems are applied to nuclear systems. It is found that the exchange functionals in the generalized gradient approximation provide agreements with the exact-Fock energy with one adjustable parameter within a few dozen $ mathrm{keV} $ accuracy, whereas the correlation functionals are not directly applicable to nuclear systems due to the existence of the nuclear force.
Machine learning is employed to build an energy density functional for self-bound nuclear systems for the first time. By learning the kinetic energy as a functional of the nucleon density alone, a robust and accurate orbital-free density functional for nuclei is established. Self-consistent calculations that bypass the Kohn-Sham equations provide the ground-state densities, total energies, and root-mean-square radii with a high accuracy in comparison with the Kohn-Sham solutions. No existing orbital-free density functional theory comes close to this performance for nuclei. Therefore, it provides a new promising way for future developments of nuclear energy density functionals for the whole nuclear chart.
The Charge-Symmetry-Breaking (CSB) character of the nucleon-nucleon interaction is well established. This work presents two different ways of introducing such effects into a nuclear Energy Density Functional (EDF). CSB terms are either coming from the effective theory expansion or are derived from electromagnetic mixing of $rho^0$ and $omega$ mesons. These terms are then introduced to Skyrme and Quark-Meson-Coupling EDFs, respectively.
The quadrupole collective Hamiltonian, based on relativistic energy density functionals, is extended to include a pairing collective coordinate. In addition to quadrupole shape vibrations and rotations, the model describes pairing vibrations and the coupling between shape and pairing degrees of freedom. The parameters of the collective Hamiltonian are determined by constrained self-consistent relativistic mean-field plus Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (RMF+BCS) calculations in the space of intrinsic shape and pairing deformations. The effect of coupling between shape and pairing degrees of freedom is analyzed in a study of low-energy spectra and transition rates of four axially symmetric $N=92$ rare-earth isotones. When compared to results obtained with the standard quadrupole collective Hamiltonian, the inclusion of dynamical pairing increases the moment of inertia, lowers the energies of excited $0^+$ states and reduces the E0-transition strengths, in better agreement with data.