nucl-th papers | Gist.Science

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.

⚛️ nuclear theory

Bayesian constraints on the transport coefficients $\eta/s$ and $\zeta/s$ from spin polarization in relativisitic heavy-ion collisions

This study employs Bayesian inference to incorporate longitudinal spin polarization of $\Lambda$ hyperons alongside conventional bulk observables in Pb+Pb collisions at 5.02 TeV, demonstrating that while current uncertainties prevent a statistically significant shift in the extracted bulk viscosity, spin polarization serves as a valuable complementary probe for constraining quark-gluon plasma transport properties.

Sushant K. Singh, Eduardo Grossi, Francesco Becattini2026-05-29

⚛️ nuclear experiments

Narrowing the Gap Between Theory and Evaluations: Angular Momentum Distributions in Fission Fragments

This paper presents a parameter-free microscopic framework that successfully predicts angular momentum distributions and photon multiplicities for neutron-induced fission of $^{235}$ U and $^{239}$ Pu, demonstrating that theoretical models are now quantitatively competitive with phenomenological approaches.

Petar Marević, Nicolas Schunck, Marc Verriere2026-05-29

⚛️ lattice

Higher Mellin Moments of the Unpolarized PDF of the Pion and the Kaon from Lattice QCD

This paper presents lattice QCD results for the first four Mellin moments of the unpolarized parton distribution functions of the pion and kaon, computed using a physical-mass $N_f=2+1+1$ twisted mass fermion ensemble to reconstruct the valence PDFs and compare them with existing theoretical and phenomenological determinations.

Constantia Alexandrou (Univ. of Cyprus,The Cyprus Inst.), Simone Bacchio (The Cyprus Inst.), Priyajit Jana (Univ. of Cyp (…)2026-05-29

⚛️ nuclear theory

The polarization of thermal dileptons emitted in high-energy heavy-ion collisions

This paper presents a comprehensive framework combining next-to-leading-order spectral functions and iEBE-MUSIC hydrodynamic simulations to demonstrate that thermal dilepton polarization in LHC Pb+Pb collisions is a sensitive probe of quark-gluon plasma properties, revealing its dependence on collision frames, pre-equilibrium effects, and establishing a direct mapping between dielectron and dimuon polarization.

Han Gao, Xiang-Yu Wu, Charles Gale, Greg Jackson, Sangyong Jeon2026-05-29

⚛️ nuclear theory

Qubit-efficient variational algorithm for nuclear structure

This paper compares three qubit-mapping strategies within the Variational Quantum Eigensolver (VQE) framework to study the ground states of $^{10}$ B and $^{12}$ C nuclei, demonstrating that the Slater determinant (SD) mapping yields the highest accuracy on quantum hardware while the charge-symmetry adapted (cSD) mapping offers superior qubit efficiency for scaling to complex nuclei.

Chandan Sarma, Paul Stevenson2026-05-29

⚛️ nuclear theory

Influence of Dark Matter on Hybrid and Twin Stars

This study investigates how self-interacting fermionic dark matter influences hybrid and twin stars within a two-fluid gravitational framework, revealing that dark matter's effect on quark matter formation and stellar stability depends on its mass and fraction, potentially shifting the nucleon-to-quark transition to higher densities and obscuring quark matter signatures in current neutron star observations.

H. C. Das2026-05-28

⚛️ nuclear theory

To bin or not to bin: does binning in multiplicity reliably suppress unwanted volume fluctuations?

This paper utilizes an analytically tractable model to demonstrate that while the Centrality Bin Width Correction (CBWC) can effectively suppress volume fluctuations in (net-)proton cumulant measurements, it may also fail and produce misleading results under specific correlation conditions.

Bengt Friman, Volker Koch2026-05-28

⚛️ nuclear theory

Bidirectional Neural Networks for Global Nucleon-Nucleus Optical Model Calculations

This paper presents a differentiable Bidirectional Liquid Neural Network emulator that accurately maps optical potential parameters to nucleon-nucleus scattering wave functions across a broad energy range and diverse nuclei, enabling efficient gradient-based parameter optimization and uncertainty quantification while successfully generalizing to unseen targets.

Jin Lei2026-05-28

⚛️ nuclear theory

Quantum stress and torsion distributions in the deuteron

This paper calculates eleven energy-momentum tensor form factors for the deuteron using impulse approximation to map out its internal mass, momentum, stress, and force distributions, revealing how antisymmetric stress components relate to spin reorientation via torsion and how non-radial forces arise from tensor interactions and spin-orbit coupling.

Wim Cosyn, Adam Freese, Alan Sosa2026-05-28

⚛️ nuclear theory

Projection operator onto spin-S eigenspaces of total and orbital angular momenta

This paper utilizes the Frobenius covariant to construct projection operators onto spin-S eigenspaces of total and orbital angular momenta, presenting them as both polynomials in the scalar product of these operators and expansions in polarization operators, while establishing a correspondence with Villars' angular momentum projection.

M. I. Krivoruchenko2026-05-28

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nucl-th

Bayesian constraints on the transport coefficients η/s\eta/sη/s and ζ/s\zeta/sζ/s from spin polarization in relativisitic heavy-ion collisions

Narrowing the Gap Between Theory and Evaluations: Angular Momentum Distributions in Fission Fragments

Higher Mellin Moments of the Unpolarized PDF of the Pion and the Kaon from Lattice QCD

The polarization of thermal dileptons emitted in high-energy heavy-ion collisions

Qubit-efficient variational algorithm for nuclear structure

Influence of Dark Matter on Hybrid and Twin Stars

To bin or not to bin: does binning in multiplicity reliably suppress unwanted volume fluctuations?

Bidirectional Neural Networks for Global Nucleon-Nucleus Optical Model Calculations

Quantum stress and torsion distributions in the deuteron

Projection operator onto spin-S eigenspaces of total and orbital angular momenta

Bayesian constraints on the transport coefficients $\eta/s$ and $\zeta/s$ from spin polarization in relativisitic heavy-ion collisions