Liquid Phases in SU(3) Chiral Perturbation Theory: Drops of Strange Chiral Nucleon Liquid & Ordinary Chiral Heavy Nuclear Liquid

TL;DR

This paper explores two co-existing chiral nucleon liquid phases within SU(3) Chiral Perturbation Theory, revealing a new Strange Chiral Nucleon Liquid phase with potential implications for nuclear physics and neutron star matter.

Contribution

It introduces a novel Strange Chiral Nucleon Liquid phase within SU(3) Chiral Perturbation Theory, supported by semi-classical solutions and experimental data fitting.

Findings

Identification of two co-existing chiral nucleon liquid phases

Discovery of a new Strange Chiral Nucleon Liquid with zero charge density

Potential impact on neutron star equation of state

Abstract

Chiral SU(3) Perturbation Theory (SU3XPT) identifies hadrons as the building blocks of strongly interacting matter at low densities and temperatures. We show that it admits two co-existing chiral nucleon liquid phases at zero external pressure with well-defined surfaces: 1) ordinary microscopic chiral heavy nuclear liquid drops (XNL) and 2) a new Strange Chiral Nucleon Liquid (SXNL) phase with both microscopic and macroscopic drop sizes. Liquid drops of both XNL and SXNL are simultaneously solutions to the SU3XPT semi-classical equations of motion and obey all relevant CVC and PCAC equations. Axial-vector currents are conserved inside macroscopic drops of SXNL, a new form of baryonic matter with zero electric charge density, which is by nature "dark". The numerical values of all SU3XPT coefficients are used to fit current scattering experiments and ordinary XNL drops (identified with the ground state of ordinary even-even spin-zero spherical closed-shell nuclei). SXNL then also emerges (i.e. without new adjustable parameters). For certain SU3XPT coefficients, finite microscopic and macroscopic drops of SXNL may be the ground state of a collection of nucleons: ordinary heavy nuclei may be meta-stable, while oceans of SXNL may force qualitative and experimentally observable changes to the neutron star equation of state.