7.

Nuclear models

7.1 Fermi gas model

7.2 Shell model

 Fermi Gas Model
• Free electron gas: protons and neutrons moving quasi-freely within the
nuclear volume
• 2 different potentials wells for protons and neutrons.
• Spherical square well potentials with the same radius

Statistics of the Fermi distribution

Given a volume V the numer of states dn goes like:

4
p 2 dpV If T=0 the nucleus is in the ground state and

dn =
(2
h) 3 pF (Fermi Momentum) is the maximum possible
momentum of the ground state.
pF
4
p 2 dpV VpF3
n=  (2
h) 3
= 2 3
6
h
0

3 N= number of neutrons
VpF3 ,n VpF, p
N = 2n = 2 3 Z= Z= number of protons
3
h 3
2 h 3

Spin 1/2 particles

 4 3 4 3
V=
R =
R0 A R0 = 1.21 fm
3 3
1
3 3
A 4
R Ap
o F h  9

3
Z = N = A /2 =  pF = pF,n = pF , p =   250MeV /c
2 3
2 3 3
h R0  8 
The nucleon moves in the
nucleus with a large momentum
pF2
Fermi Energy E F =
33 MeV
2mN
Binding Energy: BE/A= 7-8 MeV
V0=EF+B/A~ 40MeV
Nucleons are rather weakly bound in
the nucleus
 Potential well in the Fermi-gas model

The neutron potential well is deeper that the proton well because of the
missing Coulomb repulsion. The Fermi Energy is the same, otherwise the p-->n
decay would happen spontaneously. This implies that they are more neutrons
states available and hence N>Z the heavier the nuclei become.
 pF

E Kin p 2 dp
3 pF2
0
< E Kin >= pF
=  20MeV
5 2mN
 p dp 2

3 2 2
E Kin (N,Z) = N < E Kin,N > +Z < E Kin,Z >= (NpF,N + ZpFZ )
10mN
1
 N  3
2 h 3   N  9
2 h 3  3
pFN =
=
3  EKin
Decay
 V  4
R0 A
1
 Z  3
h   Z  9
2 h 3  3
2 3
pFZ =
=
3 
 V  4
R0 A
2 5 5
2  2 3 3
3 h 9
h
Z 3 + N 3 
E Kin =
3  
10 N R0  4
R0

2
19m
 A 3

2 5 5 2
N-Z
h 2 3  9
 N + Z 3 h 2  9

3 3 3 3  5 (N  Z) 2 
E Kin = 2
 2 = 2

A + + ...
R0 10mN  4 10m N R0  4
8  9 A
A3
p2 , se Z = N, di ciascun nucleone
F
L’espressione precedente si ottiene da:

D= N −Z
A "N −Z% 1
N= + $ ' = ( A + D)
2 # 2 & 2
A "N −Z% 1
Z= −$ ' = ( A − D)
2 # 2 & 2

sostituendo in:

! ! A + D $5 3 ! A − D $5 3 $
! N 5 3 + Z 5 3 $ ## #" 2 &% + #" 2 &% &&
# 23 &=
" A % # A2 3 &
# &
" %

e sviluppando i binomi arrestandosi al secondo ordine:

5! 53 5 23 10 −1 3 2 53 5 23 10 −1 3 2 $
! N 5 3 + Z 5 3 $ ! 1 $ 3 # A + 3 A D + 18 A D + A − 3 A D + 18 A D &
# 23 & =# & # &
" A % "2% # A2 3 &
" %
5 2
! N 5 3 + Z 5 3 $ ! 1 $3 ! 10 D 2 $ ! 1 $ 3 ! 5 D2 $
# 23
=
& # & # 2A + =
& # & # A + &
" A % "2% " 9 A % "2% " 9 A%

NOTA BENE:

A) Il risultato prova che l’energia cinetica totale ha un MINIMO quando N =

Z, e dato che E(totale) = T –V, con T proporzionale ad A, E(totale), che e’
negativa ed e’ anche la BINDING ENERGY totale, e’ proporzionale ad A
(primo termine dell’equazione semiempirica delle masse)

B) Aggiungendo il secondo termine, come nell’equazione semiempirica

delle masse, la BINDING ENERGY diminuisce in modulo. A parte I valori
dei coefficienti, il modello a gas di Fermi predice correttamente
2

EB = T −V = −cVol A + c Sym
(N − Z)
A
 Calculation of the state density

Considering the approximation that the nuclear potential shold have a sharp
edge in correspondence of the nuclear radius, one can approximate that to
particles trapped in the pot potential

h2 h 2
2
2
2 
  =  + +  = E
2m 2m

x 2
y 2
z 2  Volume in
h 2
2 X(x) which the
 = E X X(x).....  (r) = X(x)Y (y)Z(z) state density
2m
x 2
is calculated
YZE X X + XZE yY + XYE Z Z = EXYZ a
a

2 X(x) 1
= kX k= 2mE

x 2 h
a
X  = Ae ik x + Beik x Boundary Conditions : at x = y = z = : X =Y = Z =0
2
2 2i + 
X + = cos k+ x X  = sin k  x +
k = 
,  = 1,3,5.. k  = ,  = 0,2,4...
2a 2a a a
2
h2 2 1 h 
EX = k = 
2m 2m
a 
2
1 h  2 2 2 h  2 2
E=  ( x +  y +  z )
2
p = 2mE =  ( x + 2y + 2z )
2m
a 
a
  3  a 3 p 3
 We count how many states we have in a spherical volume of radius between 
and +


 2 = 2x + 2y + 2z d = 4
 2

1
a a
dn = d =  2 = p d = dp
8 2
h
h Momentum volume

a2 2 a a3 4
p 2 dpv
dn = p 2
dp = 2 3 p dp = Space volume
2
2 h 2
h 2
h (2
h) 3
Phase-space occupied by one state
2 2 3
p = 2mE p dp = 2m E dE
3
dn = m ( 2
2 h 3 )1 v dE E = C1 E dE
2

Number of spin 1/2 particles which sit in the well:

EF EF
EF= maximal energy of the
3 2
dn
n= 2 2 3
dE = 2C1v  E dE = ( 8m 2 )(3
h ) v E F3
1

0 dE 0
particle in the well

dn/dE 2/3
 1  23 43 2  n 

E E F =
 3
h
  30MeV
 2m v
n 9
in Cu atoms : = 6 10 23  = 8 10 22 cm 3  E F  7eV
EF v 64
Hierarchy of energy eigenstates
of the harmonic oscillator potential

N = 2(n-1) + l
E = h
(N + 3/2)
 Shell Model Potential

Skin thickness
 Spin Orbit Coupling

It changes the hierarchy of the energy levels:

< ls >
V (r) = Vcentral (r) + Vls (r)
h2
< ls > 1  l /2 j = l + 1/2 Moving below
= ( j( j + 1)  l(l + 1)  s(s + 1)) =  Moving above
h2 2 (l + 1) /2 j = l 1/2
2(l + 1)

E ls = < Vls (r) >
2

The energy levels transform into nlj levels.

Saxon-Wood Potential Shell model

2(2l+1)
92
1h
3s
2d 10
58
1g 18
2p 6 40
1f 14

2s 2
1d 10

1p 6
Spin-orbit
coupling

1s 2
Single particle level calculated in the
shell model.
Single-Particle-Spectrum of the Wood-Saxon Potential
for a heavy nucleus
Energy of first excited nuclear level in gg-nuclei
 Energy levels of some nuclei
4 16 40 48 208
2 He O
8 Ca
20 Ca
20 Pb
82
Excitation Energy
 Nuclear Magnetic Moments in Shell Model
A
μnucl = μN
(gl li + gs si ) /h
i=1

1 for p 5.58 for p

gl =  gs = 
 0 for n  3.83 for n
A
< μnucl >= μN
<  nucl gl li + gs si  nucl > /h
i=1

Wigner-Eckart Theorem: The expectation value of any vector operator of a system

is equal to the projection onto ist angular momentum

<J>
A < JM J gl li + gs si JM J >
< μnucl >= gnucl μN gnucl =

h i=1 < JM J J 2 JM J >

In the case of a single nucleon in addition to the close shell the angular
momentum of the closed shell nuclei couples to 0. The nuclear magnetic
Momentum of is equal to the nuclear magnetic mom. of the valence nucleon.

gl ( j( j + 1) + l(l + 1)
s(s + 1)) + gs( j( j + 1) + s(s + 1)
l(l + 1))

gnucl =
2 j( j + 1)
μnucl  g
g 
= gnucl J =  gl ± s l  J = l ± 1/2
μN  2l + 1 
Magnetic moments:
Shell model calculations and experimental values