A FINITE NUCLEON EXTENDED VOLUME MODEL FOR NUCLEAR MATTER

Abstract

We investigate the effects of a finite volume extension for nucleons immersed in nuclear matter. We wish in this way to explore the role played by this non-vanishing (but fixed) volume in shaping nuclear matter properties, in contrast with other models of nuclear physics in which nucleons are treated as point-like particles. We introduce a model characterized by an exclusion volume à la Van der Waals, as well as an effective non-relativistic approximation to model meson-exchange interactions between nucleons. The model is consistent with experimental values of saturation density and binding energy of nuclear matter in the domain of typical densities for neutron stars.