The moment of inertia for nuclear collective rotations was derived within the semiclassical approach based on the cranking model and the Strutinsky shell-correction method by using the non-perturbative periodic-orbit theory in the phase space variabl
es. This moment of inertia for adiabatic (statistical-equilibrium) rotations can be approximated by the generalized rigid-body moment of inertia accounting for the shell corrections of the particle density. A semiclassical phase-space trace formula allows to express quite accurately the shell components of the moment of inertia in terms of the free-energy shell corrections for integrable and partially chaotic Fermi systems, in good agreement with the quantum calculations.
