Nuclear density functional theory

Abstract

The goal of nuclear structure physics is to provide a complete understanding of the static properties of atomic nuclei, their excitation spectra, their response to external fields and their decays. While it is hard to achieve these goals within a single framework, so that there is no nuclear ‘standard model’, it is clear that nuclear Density Functional Theory (DFT) has probably the widest range of applicability so far. In this paper, we try to put DFT in a broader context, with frequent comparisons to electronic DFT. We also include a discussion of the relationships with ab initio methods and Effective Field Theories (EFTs) in general, as well as a short survey of the quite large number of applications. Although written with a personal and possibly biased perspective, the paper aims at fostering cross-fertilizations with other domains of science.