Propagation of uncertainties in the Skyrme energy-density-functional model

TL;DR

This paper investigates how uncertainties in the parameters of the Skyrme energy-density-functional model propagate to nuclear observable predictions, highlighting increased errors in neutron-rich nuclei due to isovector coupling uncertainties.

Contribution

It provides a statistical sensitivity analysis of the Skyrme-EDF model, quantifying how parameter uncertainties affect observable predictions, especially in neutron-rich nuclei.

Findings

Uncertainties increase rapidly towards neutron-rich nuclei.

Large uncertainties are linked to isovector coupling constants.

Standard errors can be quantitatively propagated to observables.

Abstract

Parameters of nuclear energy-density-functionals (EDFs) are always derived by an optimization to experimental data. For the minima of appropriately defined penalty functions, a statistical sensitivity analysis provides the uncertainties of the EDF parameters. To quantify theoretical errors of observables given by the model, we studied the propagation of uncertainties within the UNEDF0 Skyrme-EDF approach. We found that typically the standard errors rapidly increase towards neutron rich nuclei. This can be linked to large uncertainties of the isovector coupling constants of the currently used EDFs.