Title

Front-Form Calculations Of Exchange Currents In Elastic Electron-Deuteron Scattering

Date of Degree

2008

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)

Department

Physics

Advisor(s)

Wayne N. Polyzou

Abstract

Electron-deuteron scattering is an ideal tool for studying nuclear structure and nuclear forces. The elastic deuteron current matrix elements have been calculated using a Poincaré invariant quantum model with a light-front kinematic symmetry. The impulse approximation violates the Poincarécovariance and current conservation for the interacting system and two-body currents are required to satisfy these constraints. A model two-body current that has a structure motivated by "pair'' currents was constructed in this work. It appears naturally in quantum field theory. The Argonne V18 potential was used as the model nucleon-nucleon interaction and empirical nucleon form factors were used as input in the calculation of the deuteron form factors and structure functions. The sensitivity of the results to different nucleon-nucleon interactions, different nucleon form factors, and different choices of independent current matrix elements was examined. The calculations of elastic electron-deuteron scattering observables in this work are consistent with experiment to within uncertainties in the input.

Copyright

Copyright 2008 Yunfei Huang