Isospin Asymmetry in Nuclei, Neutron Stars, and Heavy-Ion Collisions

Andrew W. Steiner, Madappa Prakash, James M. Lattimer, Paul J. Ellis

Published 2005-05-23Version 1

The roles of isospin asymmetry in nuclei and neutron stars are investigated using a range of potential and field-theoretical models of nucleonic matter. The parameters of these models are fixed by fitting the properties of homogeneous bulk matter and closed-shell nuclei. We discuss and unravel the causes of correlations among the neutron skin thickness in heavy nuclei, the pressure of beta-equilibrated matter at a density of 0.1 fm$^{-3}$, and the radii of moderate mass neutron stars. The influence of symmetry energy on observables in heavy-ion collisions is summarized.