Why is the nuclear symmetry energy so uncertain at supra-saturation densities?

Abstract

Within the interacting Fermi gas model for isospin asymmetric nuclear matter, effects of the in-medium three-body interaction and the two-body short-range tensor force due to the $\rho$ meson exchange as well as the short-range nucleon correlation on the high-density behavior of the nuclear symmetry energy are demonstrated respectively in a transparent way. Possible physics origins of the extremely uncertain nuclear symmetry energy at supra-saturation densities are discussed.

Comments: Added discussions and revised format. Version to appear in Phys. Rev. C (2010)