Symmetry-dictated trucation: Solutions of the spherical shell model for heavy nuclei

Principles of dynamical symmetry are used to simplify the spherical shell model. The resulting symmetry-dictated truncation leads to dynamical symmetry solutions that are often in quantitative agreement with a variety of observables. Numerical calculations, including terms that break the dynamical symmetries, are shown that correspond to shell model calculations for heavy deformed nuclei. The effective residual interaction is simple, well-behaved, and can be determined from basic observables. With this approach, we intend to apply the shell model in systematic fashion to all nuclei. The implications for nuclear structure far from stability and for nuclear masses and other quantities of interest in astrophysics are discussed