A statistical model for the thermodynamic instabilities of asymmetric nuclear matter

Abstract

We investigate the thermodynamic instabilities of asymmetric nuclear matter (ANM) from the mechanical (isoscalar) and chemical (isovector) points of view in the framework of a statistical model that complies with the Thomas-Fermi approximation, employing the Myers and Swiatecki (MS) interactions. Our findings show that the spinodal instabilities drive the dense system towards lower asymmetry parameters, while neither pure mechanical nor pure chemical natures are predicted. Meanwhile, by paying attention to the behavior of the nuclear symmetry free energy, which plays a significant role in determining the chemical instability, the instability goes predominantly in the mechanical direction. The results of this model are consistent with those from other theoretical predictions.