Nuclear theory sits at the fascinating intersection of particle physics and the forces that hold our universe together. This field explores how protons and neutrons bind inside atomic nuclei, seeking to understand the fundamental interactions that govern matter at its most dense and energetic levels. While the mathematics involved can be incredibly complex, the core questions are deeply human: how does the universe function at its smallest scales, and what happens when we push matter to its limits?

At Gist.Science, we make these cutting-edge discoveries accessible by processing every new preprint published in this category on arXiv. Our team transforms dense academic manuscripts into clear, plain-language summaries alongside detailed technical overviews, ensuring that both experts and curious readers can grasp the latest breakthroughs without getting lost in the jargon. Below are the latest papers in nuclear theory, distilled and ready for you to explore.

🔬 physics

Six-αα cluster Bose-Einstein condensation and supersolid 12^{12}C(02+)0_2^+)+12^{12}C(02+)0_2^+) molecular structure in 24^{24}Mg

This paper demonstrates that the Superfluid α\alpha-Cluster Model, by rigorously treating Nambu-Goldstone zero modes, provides a unified description of low-spin six-α\alpha condensate states and high-spin 12^{12}C(02+0_2^+)+12^{12}C(02+0_2^+) molecular resonances in 24^{24}Mg, identifying these states as a signature of nuclear supersolidity characterized by the coexistence of superfluidity and crystallinity.

S. Ohkubo, J. Takahashi, Y. Yamanaka2026-03-06
⚛️ quantum physics

Simulating Lattice Gauge Theories with Virtual Rishons

This paper introduces a novel virtual rishon framework that enforces gauge symmetry via intermediate quantum-link representations to enable scalable simulations of lattice gauge theories in d+1 dimensions using both classical tensor networks and near-term quantum hardware, validated by benchmarking on the multi-flavor Schwinger model and 2D string tension.

David Rogerson, João Barata, Robert M. Konik, Raju Venugopalan, Ananda Roy2026-03-06
⚛️ phenomenology

Dispersion relations of deeply virtual Compton scattering: investigating twist-4 kinematic power corrections

This paper demonstrates that including twist-four kinematic power corrections modifies the subtracted constants in deeply virtual Compton scattering dispersion relations, causing the helicity-conserving amplitude to depend on double distributions in addition to the DD-term, a mixing effect that significantly impacts the extraction of pressure forces from Jefferson Lab data.

Víctor Martínez-Fernández, Cédric Mezrag2026-03-05
⚛️ phenomenology

Constraining the Energy Momentum Tensor through DVCS Dispersion Relation beyond Leading Power

This paper demonstrates that kinematic power corrections in deeply virtual Compton scattering dispersion relations provide a novel experimental constraint on nucleon momentum, pressure, and total angular momentum distributions, with continuum and lattice-QCD predictions indicating that momentum distributions account for approximately one-third of the signal at Q2=2GeV2Q^2 = 2\textrm{GeV}^2.

Víctor Martínez-Fernández, Daniele Binosi, Cédric Mezrag, Zhao-Qian Yao2026-03-05
⚛️ phenomenology

Beyond Leading Logarithms in gVg_V: The Semileptonic Weak Hamiltonian at O(ααs2)\mathcal{O}(α\,α_s^2)

This paper presents the first next-to-leading-logarithmic QCD analysis of electromagnetic corrections to the semileptonic weak Hamiltonian, calculating mixed O(ααs2)\mathcal{O}(\alpha\alpha_s^2) corrections to the vector coupling gVg_V to yield a refined radiative correction value that enhances the consistency of first-row CKM unitarity tests.

Francesco Moretti, Martin Gorbahn, Sebastian Jaeger2026-03-05
⚛️ quantum physics

Trigonometric continuous-variable gates and hybrid quantum simulations of the sine-Gordon model

This paper introduces a new universality paradigm for hybrid qubit-qumode quantum computing based on trigonometric continuous-variable gates, demonstrating their effectiveness through a deterministic ancilla-based implementation and a successful simulation of the lattice sine-Gordon model, including ground state preparation, real-time dynamics, and kink profile extraction.

Tommaso Rainaldi, Victor Ale, Matt Grau, Dmitri Kharzeev, Enrique Rico, Felix Ringer, Pubasha Shome, George Siopsis2026-03-05