Quantum fluctuations and stability of tetrahedral deformations in atomic nuclei

The possible existence of stable axial octupole and tetrahedral deformations is investigated in ⁸⁰Zr and ⁹⁸Zr. HFBCS calculations with parity projection have been performed for various parametrizations of the Skyrme energy functional. The correlation and excitation energies of negative parity states associated with shape fluctuations have been obtained using the generator coordinate method (GCM). The results indicate that in these nuclei both the axial octupole and tetrahedral deformations are of dynamic character and possess similar characteristics. Various Skyrme forces give consistent results as a function of these two octupole degrees of freedom both at the mean-field level as well as for configuration mixing calculations. (author)