A renormalizable theory for not-so-light nuclei

TL;DR

This paper introduces a finite-range interaction in Pionless EFT to achieve systematic renormalizability for nuclei beyond four nucleons, successfully matching experimental energies for several nuclei.

Contribution

It presents a novel finite-range leading order interaction that stabilizes renormalization in larger nuclei within Pionless EFT, enabling systematic calculations beyond lightest nuclei.

Findings

Ground-state energies of $^4$He, $^6$Li, $^{12}$C, and $^{16}$O agree with experimental data.

Systematic renormalizability achieved beyond four nucleons.

Method enables extensions to larger nuclei and other EFTs in strong-coupling regimes.

Abstract

We present an improved action for Pionless Effective Field Theory (EFT). Previous formulations of renormalizable nuclear EFTs have encountered instabilities in systems with more than four nucleons. We resolve this issue by introducing a finite interaction range at leading order, which is compensated for in perturbation theory at next-to-leading order. Calculated ground-state energies of $^4$He, $^6$Li, $^{12}$C, and $^{16}$O converge and agree with experiment within theoretical uncertainties. This first successful implementation of systematic renormalizability beyond the lightest nuclei enables not only applications to larger nuclei but also extensions to other EFTs in the strong-coupling regime.