Dipole polarizability of 120Sn and nuclear energy density functionals

The electric dipole strength distribution in 120Sn between 5 and 22 MeV has been determined at RCNP Osaka from a polarization transfer analysis of proton inelastic scattering at E_0 = 295 MeV and forward angles including 0{deg}. Combined with photoabsorption data an electric dipole polarizability alpha_D(120Sn) = 8.93(36) fm^3 is extracted. The dipole polarizability as isovector observable par excellence carries direct information on the nuclear symmetry energy and its density dependence. The correlation of the new value with the well established alpha_D(208Pb) serves as a test of its prediction by nuclear energy density functionals (EDFs). Models based on modern Skyrme interactions describe the data fairly well while most calculations based on relativistic Hamiltonians cannot.

Symmetry energy in nuclear density functional theory

The nuclear symmetry energy represents a response to the neutron-proton asymmetry. In this survey we discuss various aspects of symmetry energy in the framework of nuclear density functional theory, considering both non-relativistic and relativistic self-consistent mean-field realizations side-by-side. Key observables pertaining to bulk nucleonic matter and finite nuclei are reviewed. Constraints on the symmetry energy and correlations between observables and symmetry-energy parameters, using statistical covariance analysis, are investigated. Perspectives for future work are outlined in the context of ongoing experimental efforts.