Study of the Half-Diagonal Two-Body Density Matrix of Model Nuclear Matter

Abstract

The half-diagonal two-body density matrix ρ_{2h}/i(r1,r2,r') plays a central role in most theoretical treatments of the propagation of ejected nucléons and their final state interactions (FSI) in the nuclear medium. In this work based on the analysis of Ristig and Clark, we present the results of a Fermi hypernetted-chain calculation ρ_{2h}/i(r1,r2,r') for infinite symmetrical nuclear matter using a Jastrow-correlated model. The dependence of ρ_{2h} on the variables involved has been investigated in detail. Significant departures from ideal Fermi gas behavior in certain domains demonstrate the importance of short-range correlations. A comparison of our results with the predictions of Silver's approximation to ρ_{2h}, which has been employed in some treatments of FSI, reveals certain shortcomings of this approximation. The Fermi hypernetted-chain results obtained here will serve as a key input to an approximate treatment of FSI in inclusive quasielastic electron scattering from nuclear matter.