Scalar meson field and many-body forces. Chapter 23

In applications of field theory to the theory of the nuclear forces, one has frequently assumed that there is a scalar meson. It will then be responsible for most of the medium-range attraction between the nucleons. According to current ideas, however, it is possible to account for the medium-range attraction without an elementary sigma meson. This approach requires a careful treatment of the exchange of interacting pairs of π mesons, such as to include those ππ interactions which are responsible for the formation and decay of the sigma meson. Recently, the scalar field in the nuclear many-body problem has begun to receive more attention. There are two reasons for this change of philosophy. One reason is the discovery of neutron stars. In neutron stars, the nucleon number density can be much higher than in nuclei. One therefore wants to derive the equation of state from a relativistic many-body theory. This forces one to deal explicitly with a set of mesons, such that in the non-relativistic limit one recovers the one-boson-exchange potential. (Auth.)