An Effective Field Theory Approach to the Stabilization of $^8$Be in a QED Plasma

TL;DR

This paper employs effective field theory to analyze how a finite-temperature QED plasma influences the stability of $^8$Be, revealing plasma screening effects that extend its lifetime and potentially form bound states, impacting astrophysical nuclear reactions.

Contribution

It introduces an effective field theory framework to study plasma effects on nuclear resonances, specifically showing how plasma screening stabilizes $^8$Be.

Findings

Plasma screening extends $^8$Be lifetime

Bound states form when Debye mass exceeds 0.3 MeV

Implications for astrophysical nuclear reaction rates

Abstract

We use effective field theory to study the $\mathrm{\alpha}$-$\mathrm{\alpha}$ resonant scattering in a finite-temperature QED plasma. The static plasma screening effect causes the resonance state $^8$Be to live longer and eventually leads to the formation of a bound state when $m_D\gtrsim 0.3$ MeV. We speculate that this effect may have implications on the rates of cosmologically and astrophysically relevant nuclear reactions involving $\mathrm{\alpha}$ particles.