Scattering matrix pole expansions for complex wavenumbers in $R$-matrix theory

TL;DR

This paper advances the mathematical understanding of scattering matrix pole expansions for complex wavenumbers in R-matrix theory, advocating for analytic continuation to improve nuclear data evaluations.

Contribution

It establishes new properties of Siegert-Humblet radioactive poles and bridges R-matrix theory with pole expansions, promoting analytic continuation for better physical consistency.

Findings

Analytic continuation preserves unitarity and cancels spurious poles.

Invariance of Siegert-Humblet poles to channel radius changes.

Bridges R-matrix theory with Humblet-Rosenfeld pole expansions.

Abstract

In this follow-up article to [Shadow poles in the alternative parametrization of R-matrix theory, Ducru (2020)], we establish new results on scattering matrix pole expansions for complex wavenumbers in R-matrix theory. In the past, two branches of theoretical formalisms emerged to describe the scattering matrix in nuclear physics: R-matrix theory, and pole expansions. The two have been quite isolated from one another. Recently, our study of Brune's alternative parametrization of R-matrix theory has shown the need to extend the scattering matrix (and the underlying R-matrix operators) to complex wavenumbers. Two competing ways of doing so have emerged from a historical ambiguity in the definitions of the shift $\boldsymbol{S}$ and penetration $\boldsymbol{P}$ functions: the legacy Lane \& Thomas "force closure" approach, versus analytic continuation (which is the standard in mathematical physics). The R-matrix community has not yet come to a consensus as to which to adopt for evaluations in standard nuclear data libraries, such as ENDF. In this article, we argue in favor of analytic continuation of R-matrix operators. We bridge R-matrix theory with the Humblet-Rosenfeld pole expansions, and unveil new properties of the Siegert-Humblet radioactive poles and widths, including their invariance properties to changes in channel radii $a_c$. We then show that analytic continuation of R-matrix operators preserves important physical and mathematical properties of the scattering matrix -- cancelling spurious poles and guaranteeing generalized unitarity -- while still being able to close channels below thresholds.