Many-body interactions from quark exchanges and the tetrahedral crystal structure of nuclei

A new approach to nuclear interactions has been investigated on the basis of a coloured quark exchange model. The model is consistent with quantum chromodynamics and requires the existence of three-body and four-body interactions between nucleons, but only in states with antisymmetric SU(4) symmetry. This approach provides a method for calculating many properties of nuclei, gives many qualitative features of the nucleon-nucleon interaction, automatically yields saturation, but requires the α-particle to have tetrahedral symmetry. Even-even nuclei up to A=24 have been considered with particular emphasis on 12C and 16O. Remarkable agreement with experiment has been achieved not only for ground state properties but also for excited states. A successful synthesis of rotations, vibrations, cluster states, and single-particle motion appears to have been attained. Unusually accurate values of the total binding energies have been predicted for even-even nuclei. Qualitative discussions of the possible ramifications of the present theory of heavier nuclei are also included. (Auth.)