Nuclear Theory·nucl-th

Thursday·February 12, 2026

8 papers—3 primary·5 cross-listed

01
An improved linear Boltzmann transport model for hadron and jet suppression in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions
Yichao Dang🇨🇳 · Wen-Jing Xing🇨🇳 · Shanshan Cao🇨🇳 · Guang-You Qin🇨🇳
Jets serve as powerful tomographic probes of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP) created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. While the expanding landscape of jet observables reveals multi-faceted aspects of jet-medium interactions, a precise and simultaneous description of the nuclear modification factors of hadrons and full jets remains a challenge for theoretical models. In this work, we present two essential improvements to the linear Boltzmann transport (LBT) model to bridge this gap. First, instead of implementing in-medium parton transport after vacuum parton showers complete, we introduce a medium scale at which in-medium parton transport is inserted into the vacuum parton showers, providing a more physical picture of parton-QGP interactions. Second, we incorporate color flow information into the LBT model, enabling string connections between partons whose configurations are correlated with the medium-modified parton showers before hadronization. We demonstrate that both improvements alter the predicted ratio of hadron to jet quenching, leading to a satisfactory unified description of the nuclear modification factors of hadrons and jets with different flavors.
nucl-thhep-phnucl-exNucl.Sci.Tech.(2026)·5 citations
02
Constraining cross sections for unstable $^{153, 159}$ Gd $(n, γ)$ and their astrophysical implications
Shu-Tong Zhang · Zhi-Cai Li · Kai-Jun Luo · Hong-Chen Liu · Yun-Jie Guo · Kai-Xin Zhao · Zi-Ang Lin · Wen Luo
Neutron capture $(n, γ)$ cross sections of Gadolinium (Gd) isotopes are critical to astrophysics research, nuclear reactor designs, and medical applications. However, the available $(n, γ)$ data on unstable Gd isotopes are scarce and direct measurement is challenging. In this work, we propose an approach to infer the $(n, γ)$ cross sections for unstable $^{153, 159}$ Gd isotopes by constraining both the $γ$ -ray strength functions ( $γ$ SFs) and nuclear level densities (NLDs). Specifically, the key $γ$ SF parameters are adjusted to match the available experimental data, and the NLD parameters are determined by renormalizing microscopic level densities through a Bayesian optimization method. Our approach is verified by comparing our predictions with the experimental $(n, γ)$ data for the stable $^{155, 157}$ Gd isotopes. We then infer the unstable $^{153, 159} Gd (n, γ)$ cross sections within the neutron energy range of 0.01--5.0 MeV. The resulting uncertainty is about $30%$ , which is significantly reduced by a factor of 5.5 compared to a large uncertainty of $\sim 167%$ predicted with different nuclear models in TALYS. We further calculate the astrophysical reaction rates for the $^{153, 159} Gd$ isotopes. It is found that the $^{159} Gd (n, γ)$ rate is larger by a factor of $\sim$ 2.9 than the JINA REACLIB recommendation. This enhancement increases the neutron capture branching ratio at $^{159}$ Gd. Consequently, the resulting $^{160}$ Gd abundance is increased by a factor of $\sim$ 2 compared to predictions using the JINA REACLIB rate in $s$ -process nucleosynthesis simulations. Our approach is promising for extracting $(n, γ)$ data on a wider range of unstable isotopic chains as well as for essential astrophysical reaction network calculations and nuclear science applications.
nucl-thFront.Phys.(Beijing)(2026)·0 citations
03
Strong potential in a box for applications to femtoscopy
Gleb Romanenko🇮🇹 · Francesca Bellini🇮🇹
Understanding the short-range nucleon-nucleon interaction is essential for the interpretation of correlation femtoscopy measurements in high-energy hadronic and nuclear collisions. We present an analytical treatment of the strong interaction in two-nucleon systems by modelling it with a square-well potential and solving the Schroedinger equation in the presence of the Coulomb interaction. The resulting pair wave function is regular at small relative distances and allows for the inclusion of multiple partial waves. We apply this framework to proton-proton femtoscopy and compute theoretical correlation functions for realistic source sizes. We demonstrate that the commonly used Lednicky-Lyuboshits asymptotic approximation overestimates the correlation signal for small sources. Comparisons with numerical calculations using the CATS framework and the Argonne v18 potential show good agreement within current experimental uncertainties. The proposed analytical approach provides a practical and flexible tool for femtoscopic analyses of nucleon and baryon pairs.
nucl-thhep-phnucl-ex2 citations
04
Prediction on total inventory of radioisotopes produced by the interaction of 20Ne beams on 181Ta (110-170 MeV)
Sumana Mukherjee · Susanta Lahiri · Rajarshi Raut · Chiranjib Barman
This study aims to model the evaporation residues produced by the interaction of 108-170 MeV of 20Ne with the 181Ta target using Monte-Carlo PACE4 simulation code. Reaction mechanisms taking place in these interactions along with production cross sections have been discussed. Possibility of the production of clinically important exotic neutron deficient radioisotopes from these interactions have been assessed, but the result is not encouraging for production of radioisotopes useful in nuclear medicine.
↳ physics.med-phnucl-exnucl-th0 citations
05
Unified Description of Pseudoscalar Meson Structure from Light to Heavy Quarks
B. Almeida-Zamora🇲🇽 · L. Albino🇲🇽 · A. Bashir🇪🇸 · J.J. Cobos-Martínez🇲🇽 · J. Segovia🇪🇸
We present a comprehensive review of the structure of pseudoscalar mesons within an algebraic model formulated in the light-front framework. The approach provides a unified description of leading-twist parton distribution amplitudes (PDAs), light-front wave functions (LFWFs), generalized parton distributions (GPDs), parton distribution functions (PDFs), elastic electromagnetic form factors (EFFs), charge radii, and impact-parameter GPDs (IPS-GPDs), all derived consistently from the same underlying Bethe-Salpeter amplitudes. Results are discussed for light ( $π$ , $K$ ), heavy-light ( $D$ , $D_{s}$ , $B$ , $B_{s}$ , $B_{c}$ ), and heavy-heavy ( $η_{c}$ , $η_{b}$ ) pseudoscalar mesons, allowing for a systematic analysis of the role played by quark-mass asymmetry and heavy-quark dynamics. The study highlights how increasing quark masses drive a transition from broad, asymmetric momentum distributions to increasingly symmetric and spatially compact configurations. Comparisons with lattice QCD, Dyson-Schwinger equation studies, and contact-interaction models are presented where available. Overall, the algebraic model offers a transparent and symmetry-consistent framework to explore the three-dimensional momentum and spatial structure of pseudoscalar mesons across all quark-mass regimes.
↳ hep-phhep-exhep-latnucl-ex+1Symmetry(2026)·2 citations
06
A multidimensional landscape of the $η$ and $η^{'}$ mesons
L. Albino🇪🇸 · K. Raya🇪🇸 · R. J. Hernández-Pinto🇲🇽 · B. Almeida-Zamora🇪🇸 · J. Segovia🇪🇸 · A. Huet🇲🇽 · A. Bashir🇪🇸
We employ a recently proposed form-invariant algebraic model for the quark propagator and the Bethe-Salpeter amplitude of pseudoscalar mesons to study the internal structure of $η$ and $η^{'}$ mesons. This model facilitates the construction of the Bethe-Salpeter wavefunction, whose projection onto an appropriate flavor-basis leads to the light-front wavefunction for convenient linear combinations of the $s s ˉ$ and $l l ˉ \sim (u u ˉ + d d ˉ)$ states. Using an overlap representation, we compute the valence-quark generalized parton distributions (GPDs). The construction of the model ensures that this multidimensional quantity is determined entirely by the corresponding valence-quark distribution amplitudes. Once the GPDs are constructed, we carry out a straightforward derivation of other desired physical observables such as the distribution functions and the electromagnetic form factors. We also provide explicit comparisons with available results, demonstrating that the present model offers a consistent physical picture for all ground-state pseudoscalar mesons.
↳ hep-phnucl-thPRD(2026)·2 citations
07
Emulation of large-scale qubit registers with a phase-space approach
Christian de Correc🇫🇷 · Denis Lacroix🇫🇷 · Corentin Bertrand🇫🇷
A phase-space approach is used and benchmarked for the simulation of the continuous-time evolution of large registers of qubits. It is based on a statistical ensemble of independent mean-field trajectories, where mean field is introduced at the level of the qubits, substituting quantum fluctuations/correlations with classical ones. The approach only involves at worse a quadratic cost in the system size, allowing to simulate up to several thousands of qubits on a classical computer. It provides qualitatively accurate description of one-qubit observables evolutions, making it a useful reference in comparison to techniques limited to small qubit numbers. The predictive power is, however, less robust for multi-qubits observables. We benchmark the method on the $k$ -local transverse-field Ising model, considering a large variety of systems ranging from local to all-to-all interactions, and from weak to strong coupling regimes, with up to 2000 qubits. To showcase the versatility of the approach, simulations on 2D and 3D Ising models are also made.
↳ quant-phcond-mat.str-elnucl-thAPS Open Science(2026)·0 citations
08
Wave Propagation and Effective Refraction in Lorentz-Violating Wormhole Geometries
Semra Gurtas Dogan🇹🇷 · Omar Mustafa🇹🇷 · Abdulkerim Karabulut🇹🇷 · Abdullah Guvendi🇹🇷
We study the propagation of massless scalar waves in static, spherically symmetric Lorentz-violating wormhole spacetimes within a geometric-optical framework. Starting from a general metric characterized by an arbitrary lapse function and areal radius, we derive curvature invariants, establish regularity conditions at the wormhole throat, and reduce the Klein-Gordon equation to a Helmholtz-type radial wave equation. This formulation naturally leads to a position- and frequency-dependent effective refractive index determined by the underlying spacetime geometry and Lorentz-violating structure, resulting in effective frequency-dependent wave-optical behavior. We show that divergences of the refractive index coincide with Killing horizons, while curvature-induced turning points control reflection, transmission, and confinement of scalar waves. By analyzing constant, linear, and quadratic lapse profiles, we identify horizonless transmission regimes, asymmetric wave propagation, and multi-horizon trapping structures. Our results reveal that Lorentz violation can significantly modify wave-optical properties of curved spacetime, generating graded-index analogues and geometric confinement of modes without curvature singularities. This unified optical perspective provides a robust framework for investigating wave scattering, resonances, and potential observational signatures in Lorentz-violating gravitational backgrounds.
↳ gr-qcnucl-th1 citation

Affiliations

first authorsco-authorsvia INSPIRE