Conference Discussion of the Nuclear Force

TL;DR

This paper summarizes a conference discussion among experts on the nuclear force, exploring different theoretical approaches, their contributions, and implications for understanding nonperturbative QCD and nuclear phenomena.

Contribution

It provides an overview of diverse theoretical perspectives on the nuclear force and discusses their relevance and precision for various nuclear physics applications.

Findings

Different approaches offer complementary insights into the nuclear force.

Precision in NN data fits is crucial for certain applications.

Insights into nonperturbative QCD can be gained from nuclear force studies.

Abstract

Discussion of the nuclear force, lead by a round table consisting of T. Cohen, E. Epelbaum, R. Machleidt, and F. Gross (chair). After an invited talk by Machleidt, published elsewhere in these proceedings, brief remarks are made by Epelbaum, Cohen, and Gross, followed by discussion from the floor moderated by the chair. The chair asked the round table and the participants to focus on the following issues: (i) What does each approach (chiral effective field theory, large Nc, and relativistic phenomenology) contribute to our knowledge of the nuclear force? Do we need them all? Is any one transcendent? (ii) How important for applications (few body, nuclear structure, EMC effect, for example) are precise fits to the NN data below 350 MeV? How precise do these fits have to be? (iii) Can we learn anything about nonperturbative QCD from these studies of the nuclear force? The discussion presented here is based on a video recording made at the conference and transcribed afterward.