Scattering integral equations and four nucleon problem

Existing results from the application of integral equation technique to the four-nucleon bound states and scattering are reviewed. The first numerical calculations of the four-body integral equations have been done ten years ago. Yet, it is still widely believed that these equations are too complicated to solve numerically. The purpose of this review is to provide a clear and elementary introduction in the integral equation method and to demonstrate its usefulness in physical applications. The presentation is based on the quasiparticle approach. This permits a simple interpretation of the equations in terms of quasiparticle scattering. The mathematical basis for the quasiparticle approach is the Hilbert-Schmidt method of the Fredholm integral equation theory. The first part of this review contains a detailed discussion of the Hilbert-Schmidt expansion as applied to the 2-particle amplitudes and to the kernel of the four-body equations. The second part contains the discussion of the four-body quasiparticle equations and of the resed forullts obtain bound states and scattering