Neutron drip line and the equation of state of nuclear matter

TL;DR

This paper explores how the neutron drip line's position depends on the symmetry energy's density dependence, revealing that increased density derivatives shift the drip line towards more neutron-rich nuclei, especially in light elements.

Contribution

It introduces a macroscopic nuclear model linking the neutron drip line to the symmetry energy's density dependence, highlighting the surface effects in neutron-rich nuclei.

Findings

Neutron drip line shifts to more neutron-rich nuclei with higher symmetry energy density derivatives.

Surface properties significantly influence the drip line position in light nuclei.

The model predicts appreciable shifts in the neutron drip line based on the symmetry energy parameters.

Abstract

We investigate how the neutron drip line is related to the density dependence of the symmetry energy, by using a macroscopic nuclear model that allows us to calculate nuclear masses in a way dependent on the equation of state of asymmetric nuclear matter. The neutron drip line obtained from these masses is shown to appreciably shift to a neutron-rich side in a nuclear chart as the density derivative of the symmetry energy increases. Such shift is clearly seen for light nuclei, a feature coming mainly from the surface property of neutron-rich nuclei.