Symmetries Galore: Implications of the newly recognized proliferation of symmetry remnants in nuclei (1/2)

by Prof. Richard Casten (University of Yale)

Tuesday 5 Aug 2014, 15:00 → 16:00 Europe/Zurich

26-1-022 (CERN)

The concept of structural symmetries has long provided invaluable benchmarks for structure in complex physical systems, including atomic nuclei. However, very few nuclei actually manifest these symmetries empirically, limiting to date their specific usefulness to that of idealized role models. However, recently, the concepts of Partial Dynamical Symmetries (PDSs) and Quasi-Dynamical Symmetries (QDSs) have greatly expanded applicability of symmetries and their possible use as a practical tool for understanding actual nuclei. These ideas will be introduced and the first extensive test of a nuclear PDS will be discussed. Comparison with the data for deformed nuclei supports the validity of this PDS. But, beyond that, comparison with previous numerical calculations in which all symmetries are broken will be shown to give new insights into the nature of collective models and into the importance of the valence space for understanding nuclei and the evolution of their structure with N and Z.

Slides Symmetries_Galore__CERN,_August,_2014.pdf Symmetries_Galore__CERN,_August,_2014.pptx