arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J. Nieves.
We evaluate pionic decay widths of Lambda hypernuclei using a shell model for, both the nuclear bound and the continuum nucleon wave functions in the final state, and distorted waves for the outgoing pion. An excellent agreement with the recent KEK measurement of $π^-$-decay widths of $^{12}_Λ$C and $^{28}_Λ$Si is found. Besides, results for $^{56}_Λ$Fe are consistent with the existing upper bound.
Meson-Baryon Interactions can be successfully described using both Chiral Symmetry and Unitarity. The $s-$wave meson-baryon scattering amplitude is analyzed in a Bethe-Salpeter coupled channel formalism incorporating Chiral Symmetry in the potential. Two body coupled channel unitarity is exactly preserved. The needed two particle irreducible matrix amplitude is taken from lowest order Chiral Perturbation Theory in a relativistic formalism. Off-shell behavior is parameterized in terms of low energy constants. The relation to the heavy baryon limit is discussed. The position of the complex poles in the second Riemann sheet of the scattering amplitude determine masses and widths baryonic resonances of the N(1535), N(1670), $Λ(1405)$ and $Λ(1670)$ resonances which compare well with accepted numbers.
The $s-$wave meson-baryon scattering amplitude is analyzed for the strangeness $S=-1$ and isospin I=0 sector in a Bethe-Salpeter coupled channel formalism incorporating Chiral Symmetry. Four two-body channels have been considered: $\bar K N$, $πΣ$, $ηΛ$, $ K Ξ$. The needed two particle irreducible matrix amplitude is taken from lowest order Chiral Perturbation Theory in a relativistic formalism. Off-shell behaviour is parameterized in terms of low energy constants, which outnumber those assumed in previous works and provide a better fit to the data. The position of the complex poles in the second Riemann sheet of the scattering amplitude determine masses and widths of the $Λ(1405)$ and $Λ(1670)$ resonances which compare well with accepted numbers.
We evaluate widths and shifts of pionic atoms using a theoretical microscopical potential in which the pion decay constant $f_π$ is changed by an in--medium density dependent one ($f_π(ρ)$), predicted by different partial Chiral restoration calculations. We show that the results obtained for shifts and widths are worse than if this modification were not implemented. On the other hand, we argue that in microscopic many body approaches for the pion selfenergy, based on effective Lagrangians, the mechanisms responsible for the change of $f_π$ in the medium should be automatically incorporated. Therefore, the replacement of $f_π$ by $f_π(ρ)$ in the many body derivation of the microscopic potential would be inappropriate.
The energies and widths of bound states of the $η$ meson in different nuclei are obtained using the results for its selfenergy in a nuclear medium, which is evaluated in a selfconsistent manner using techniques of unitarized chiral perturbation theory. We find bound states in all studied nuclei (from $^{12}{C}$ on) and the half widths obtained are larger than the separation of the levels, what makes the experimental observation of peaks unlikely. We have paid a special attention to the region of nuclei where only the $1s$ state appears and the binding energies are of the order of magnitude of the half width, which would magnify the chances that some broad peak could be observed. This is found in the region of $^{24}{Mg}$ with a binding energy around 12.6 MeV and half width of 16.7 MeV. In heavy nuclei like $^{208}{Pb}$ there are many bound states which would be difficult to disentangle and the deepest state has a binding energy about 21 MeV and half width around 16 MeV. Such an overlapping accumulation of states could be seen as an extension of the continuum of $η$ strength into the bound region in $η$ production experiments.
Data on Lambda-Lambda hypernuclei provide a unique method to learn details on the strangeness S =-2 sector of the baryon-baryon interaction. From the free space Bonn-Julich potentials, determined from data on baryon-baryon scattering in the S=0,-1 channels, we construct an interaction in the S =-2 sector to describe the experimentally known Lambda-Lambda hypernuclei. After including short--range (Jastrow) and RPA correlations, we find masses for these Lambda-Lambda hypernuclei in a reasonable agreement with data, taking into account theoretical and experimental uncertainties. Thus, we provide a natural extension, at low energies, of the Bonn-Julich OBE potentials to the S =-2 channel.
We evaluate the p-wave $K^-N$ amplitudes from the chiral Lagrangians and from there construct the p-wave part of the $K^-$ nucleus optical potential plus a small s-wave part induced from the elementary p-wave amplitude and the nuclear Fermi motion. Simultaneously, the momentum and energy dependence of the s-wave optical potential, previously developed, are taken into account and shown to generate a small p-wave correction to the optical potential. All the corrections considered are small compared to the leading s-wave potential, and lead to changes in the shifts and widths which are smaller than the experimental errors. A thorough study of the threshold region and low densities is conducted, revealing mathematical problems for which a physical solution is given.
A microscopic optical potential based on a chiral model is used as a starting point for studying kaonic atoms levels. We add to this potential a phenomenological part fitted to the experimentally known shifts and widths of kaonic levels. This fitted potential is used to predict deeply bound atomic levels, as well as nuclear levels. Comparison with the predictions of other optical models found in the literature is done. Also the effects on the kaonic atoms levels of certain known non-local contributions to the optical potential are also analyzed.
The inverse amplitude method is used to unitarize the two loop $ππ$ scattering amplitudes of SU(2) Chiral Perturbation Theory in the $I=0,J=0$, $I=1,J=1$ and $I=2,J=0$ channels. An error analysis in terms of the low energy one-loop parameters $\bar l_{1,2,3,4,}$ and existing experimental data is undertaken. A comparison to standard resonance saturation values for the two loop coefficients $\bar b_{1,2,3,4,5,6} $ is also carried out. Crossing violations are quantified and the convergence of the expansion is discussed.
We use the Omnes representation to obtain the q-squared dependence of the form factors f+ and f0 for semileptonic H -> pi decays from the elastic pi H -> pi H scattering amplitudes, where H denotes a B or D meson. The scattering amplitudes used satisfy elastic unitarity and are calculated from two-particle irreducible amplitudes obtained using tree-level heavy meson chiral perturbation theory (HMChPT). The q-squared dependences for the form factors agree with lattice QCD results when the HMChPT coupling constant, g, takes values smaller than 0.32, and confirm the milder dependence of f0 on q-squared found in sumrule calculations.
In this talk we briefly describe some basic elements of chiral perturbation theory, $χPT$, and how the implementation of unitarity and other novel elements lead to a better expansion of the $T$ matrix for meson meson and meson baryon interactions. Applications are then done to the $ ππ$ interaction in nuclear matter in the scalar and vector channels, antikaons in nuclei and $K^-$ atoms, and how the $ϕ$ meson properties are changed in a nuclear medium.
We review our recent work on unitarization and chiral perturbation theory both in the $ππ$ and the $πN$ sectors. We pay particular attention to the Bethe-Salpeter and Inverse Amplitude unitarization methods and their recent applications to $ππ$ and $πN$ scattering.
Heavy Baryon Chiral Perturbation Theory (HBChPT) to leading order provides a kernel to solve the Bethe-Salpeter equation for the $P_{33}$ ($Δ(1232)$-channel) $π-N$ system, in the infinite nucleon mass limit. Crossed Born terms include, when iterated within the Bethe-Salpeter equation, both {\it all} one- and {\it some} two-pion intermediate states, hence preserving elastic unitarity below the two-pion production threshold. This suggests searching for a solution with the help of dispersion relations and suitable subtraction constants, when all in-elasticities are explicitly neglected. The solution allows for a successful description of the experimental phase shift from threshold up to $\sqrt{s}=1500$ MeV in terms of four subtraction constants. Next-to-leading order HBChPT calculations are also used to estimate the unknown subtraction constants which appear in the solution. Large discrepancies are encountered which can be traced to the slow convergence rate of HBChPT.
We present the results of a lattice computation of the form factors for B^0 ->pi^- l^+nu_l decays near zero-recoil. These results will allow a determination of the CKM matrix element |Vub| when measurements of the differential decay rate become available. We also provide models for extrapolation of the form factors and rate to the full recoil range. Our computation is performed in the quenched approximation to QCD on a 24^3x48 lattice at beta=6.2, using a non-perturbatively O(a)-improved action. The masses of all light valence quarks involved are extrapolated to their physical values.
We show how the unitarized description of pion nucleon scattering within Heavy Baryon Chiral Perturbation Theory can be considerably improved, by a suitable reordering of the expansion over the nucleon mass. Within this framework, the $Δ$ resonance and its associated pole can be recovered from the chiral parameters obtained from low-energy determinations. In addition, we can obtain a good description of the six $S$ and $P$ wave phase shifts in terms of chiral parameters with a natural size and compatible with the Resonance Saturation Hypothesis.
Using the analysis of ChPT to two loops, we perform an error analysis of the threshold and low energy parameters, based on the uncertainties for the one loop low energy parameters and the resonance saturation mechanism. Different sets of one loop low energy constants have been considered.Thus, the predictive power of the effective field theory is quantified on the basis of the present experimental uncertainties.
The Bethe-Salpeter equation restores exact elastic unitarity in the $s-$ channel by summing up an infinite set of chiral loops. We use this equation to show how a chiral expansion can be undertaken in the two particle irreducible amplitude and the propagators accomplishing exact elastic unitarity at any step. Renormalizability of the amplitudes can be achieved by allowing for an infinite set of counter-terms as it is the case in ordinary Chiral Perturbation Theory. Crossing constraints can be imposed on the parameters to a given order. Within this framework, we calculate the leading and next-to-leading contributions to the elastic $ππ$ scattering amplitudes, for all isospin channels, and to the vector and scalar pion form factors in several renormalization schemes. A satisfactory description of amplitudes and form factors is obtained. In this latter case, Watson's theorem is automatically satisfied. From such studies we obtain a quite accurate determination of some of the ChPT $SU(2)-$low energy parameters (${\bar l}_1 - {\bar l}_2 = -6.1\er{0.1}{0.3} $ and ${\bar l}_6= 19.14 \pm 0.19$). We also compare the two loop piece of our amplitudes to recent two--loop calculations.
Using a microscopic antikaon-nucleus optical potential recently developed by Ramos and Oset (nucl-th/9906016, in print in Nuclear Physics A) from a chiral model, we calculate strong interaction shifts and widths for $K^-$ atoms. This purely theoretical potential gives an acceptable description of the measured data ($χ^2/{\rm num.data}= 3.8$), though it turns out to be less attractive than what can be inferred from the existing kaon atomic data. We also use a modified potential, obtained by adding to the latter theoretical one a s-wave term which is fitted to known experimental kaonic data ($χ^2/{\rm degree of freedom}= 1.6$), to predict deeply bound $K^-$ atomic levels, not detected yet. This improved potential predicts, in general, states even narrower than those recently reported by Friedman and Gal. (Phys.Let.B459, 1999, 43). This reinforces the idea that these deeply atomic states can be detected and resolved by using suitable nuclear reactions. Besides, we also study $K^-$ and $\bar K^0$ nuclear bound states and compute binding energies and widths, for both species of antikaons, in $^{12}$C, $^{40}$Ca and $^{208}$Pb. Despite of restricting our study only to potentials obtained from best fits to the known kaonic atom data, the dynamics of these nuclear bound states depend dramatically on the particular optical potential used.