Saturation of the Nuclear forces

[ghery]

Hello:

The nucleons insede a nuclei, interact only with the closest nucleons, How does QCD explain that the nuclear forces saturate?

Thanks

 

[malawi_glenn]

saturates comes from the fact that the force betweens nucleons are short-ranged.

Deriving the nucleon-nucleon force from QCD is extremley difficult! See threads:
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=252128
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=251456

 

[sir-pinski]

for your question. The saturation of nuclear forces is a phenomenon that is explained by the theory of quantum chromodynamics (QCD). QCD is a theory that describes the interactions between particles called quarks and gluons, which make up protons and neutrons. These particles are held together by the strong nuclear force, which is one of the four fundamental forces in nature.

The strong nuclear force is responsible for binding the nucleons (protons and neutrons) together to form the nucleus of an atom. This force is mediated by gluons, which are particles that carry the strong force between quarks. The strength of the nuclear force depends on the distance between the nucleons, with the force becoming stronger as the distance between them decreases.

In the case of nuclear forces, the strong force is short-ranged, meaning that it only acts over a very short distance. This is due to the fact that the gluons, which carry the force, are constantly interacting with other particles and can only travel a short distance before being absorbed by another particle. As a result, the nuclear force saturates at a certain distance, as the gluons are unable to travel any further to exert a stronger force.

Additionally, QCD also explains the saturation of nuclear forces through the concept of color confinement. This means that quarks and gluons cannot exist as free particles, but must always be confined within larger particles like protons and neutrons. This confinement also limits the range of the strong nuclear force, leading to its saturation.

In summary, the saturation of nuclear forces is a consequence of the short-range nature of the strong nuclear force and the principle of color confinement in QCD. These concepts help to explain why nucleons only interact with their closest neighbors and why the nuclear force saturates at a certain distance. I hope this helps to clarify the explanation of nuclear force saturation in the context of QCD.