Speaker
Description
Nuclear Density Functional Theory (DFT) is a widely used theoretical framework that has been developed over several decades and is accurate in describing nuclear ground-state properties such as nuclear masses and radii, as well as excitation spectra, decay properties, reactions, and fission. However, the results often depend on the specific Energy Density Functional (EDF) employed. EDFs that are equally successful for all observables have not yet emerged, and systematic ways to improve them remain unclear.
Nuclear DFT still lags behind electronic DFT in terms of its connection to exact conditions and to more fundamental calculations. I will explain the difference between the nuclear and electronic cases and I will discuss the current status and future perspectives of nuclear DFT grounded in ab initio nuclear theory.
I will then discuss a further topic, that is how DFT could be made efficient for heavy nuclei and for complex, extended systems such as the crust of neutron stars, trhough the development of orbital-free DFT (OF-DFT).