Multi-neutron correlations in light nuclei via ab-initio lattice simulations

Abstract

The quest to understand multi-neutron systems has a long history, and recent experimental efforts aim to probe candidate four-neutron configurations in neutron-rich light nuclei such as ${}^8$He and ${}^7$H via quasi-free knockout reactions. However, the ground-state energies of the hydrogen isotopes ${}^6$H and ${}^7$H are not yet well constrained, with substantial discrepancies across experimental analyses and theoretical predictions. Using ab initio nuclear lattice effective field theory with an ensemble of 282 chiral two- and three-nucleon forces, we perform a Bayesian uncertainty-quantified analysis of the ground-state energies of ${}^6$H and ${}^7$H. The marginal posteriors suggest single-neutron separation energy $S_n({}^7\mathrm{H})=0.35_{-0.32}^{+0.32}$ MeV, which kinematically disfavors sequential decay via ${}^6\mathrm{H}+n$ and thereby makes multi-neutron emission channels comparatively more relevant. Intrinsic densities indicate triton- and $\hat{I}\pm$-like clusters in ${}^7$H and ${}^8$He, respectively. By computing two-body and reduced four-body correlation functions, we find that the valence neutrons in the surface region of these systems form compact dineutrons that predominantly organize into approximately symmetric dineutron-dineutron configurations, with only a small but non-negligible fraction assembling into more compact tetraneutron-like substructures. In ${}^7$H, these components account for roughly 95\% and 5\% of the sampled four-neutron configurations, respectively, and ${}^8$He exhibits a similar hierarchy. For these configurations, we also extract the corresponding spatial and angular correlation patterns among the nucleons. These results provide nuclear-structure insights into the debate surrounding four-neutron clusters and complement ongoing experimental searches for tetraneutron signatures in light nuclei.

9+10 pages, 3+6 figures, supplemental material included