Contributor info: Prof. Kristina Launey

Kristina D. Launey, K. S. Becker, G. H. Sargsyan, O. M. Molchanov, M. Burrows, A. Mercenne, T. Dytrych, D. Langr, J. P. Draayer

SciPost Phys. Proc. 14, 007 (2023) · published 23 November 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

Dominant shapes naturally emerge in atomic nuclei from first principles, thereby establishing the shape-preserving symplectic Sp(3, $\mathbb{R}$) symmetry as remarkably ubiquitous and almost perfect symmetry in nuclei. We discuss the critical role of this emergent symmetry in enabling machine-learning descriptions of heavy nuclei, ab initio modeling of $\alpha$ clustering and collectivity, as well as tests of beyond-the-standard-model physics. In addition, the Sp(3, $\mathbb{R}$) and SU(3) symmetries provide relevant degrees of freedom that underpin the ab initio symmetry-adapted no-core shell model with the remarkable capability of reaching nuclei and reaction fragments beyond the lightest and close-to-spherical species.