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The pi- + 2H -> n + n, pi- + 3H -> n + n + n, pi- + 3He -> n + d and pi- + 3He -> p + n + n capture reactions from the lowest atomic orbitals are studied under full inclusion of final state interactions. Our results are obtained with the single-nucleon and two-nucleon transition operators derived at leading order in chiral effective field theory. The initial and final three-nucleon states are calculated with the chiral nucleon-nucleon SMS potential up to N4LO+ augmented by the consistently regularized chiral N2LO three-nucleon potential. We found that absorption rates depend strongly on the nuclear pion absorption operator used, and its two-body parts change the rates by a few orders of magnitude. The final state interactions between nucleons generated by the two-nucleon forces are also important, while the three-nucleon interaction plays a visible role only in the pi- + 3He -> n + d reaction. Our absorption rate for the pi- + 2H -> n + n process is in good agreement with the experimental data from the hadronic ground-state broadening in pionic deuterium. The capture rates on 3He are also generally consistent with the spectroscopic data within error bars, though our central values are found to be systematically below the data. We show that for the three-body breakup processes the dominant contributions to the absorption rates arise from the quasi-free scattering and final-state interaction kinematical configurations., 30 pages, 11 figures; authors' list corrected

We report the first measurement of the \eep three-body breakup reaction cross sections in helium-3 ($^3$He) and tritium ($^3$H) at large momentum transfer ($\langle Q^2 \rangle \approx 1.9$ (GeV/c)$^2$) and $x_B>1$ kinematics, where the cross section should be sensitive to quasielastic (QE) scattering from single nucleons. The data cover missing momenta $40 \le p_{miss} \le 500$ MeV/c that, in the QE limit with no rescattering, equals the initial momentum of the probed nucleon. The measured cross sections are compared with state-of-the-art ab-initio calculations. Overall good agreement, within $\pm20\%$, is observed between data and calculations for the full $p_{miss}$ range for $^3$H and for $100 \le p_{miss} \le 350$ MeV/c for $^3$He. Including the effects of rescattering of the outgoing nucleon improves agreement with the data at $p_{miss} > 250$ MeV/c and suggests contributions from charge-exchange (SCX) rescattering. The isoscalar sum of $^3$He plus $^3$H, which is largely insensitive to SCX, is described by calculations to within the accuracy of the data over the entire $p_{miss}$ range. This validates current models of the ground state of the three-nucleon system up to very high initial nucleon momenta of $500$ MeV/c., Accepted for publication in PRL. 8 pages, 3 figures, and online supplementary materials

The isospin character of p-n pairs at large relative momentum has been observed for the first time in the 16O ground state. A strong population of the J,T=1,0 state and a very weak population of the J,T=0,1 state were observed in neutron pick up domain of 16O(p,pd) at 392 MeV. This strong isospin dependence at large momentum transfer is not reproduced by the distorted-wave impulse approximation calculations with known spectroscopic amplitudes. The results indicate the presence of high-momentum protons and neutrons induced by the tensor interactions in ground state of 16O., Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters

The recently derived long-range two-pion exchange (TPE) contributions to the nuclear current operator which appear at next-to-leading order (NLO) of the chiral expansion are used to describe electromagnetic processes. We study their role in the photodisintegration of 2H and 3He and compare our predictions with experimental data. The bound and scattering states are calculated using five different parametrizations of the chiral next-to-next-to-leading order (N2LO) nucleon-nucleon (NN) potential which allows us to estimate the theoretical uncertainty at a given order in the chiral expansion. For some observables the results are very close to the predictions based on the AV18 NN potential and the current operator (partly) consistent with this force. In the most cases, the addition of long-range TPE currents improved the description of the experimental data., Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures (35 eps files)

A recently developed formulation for treating two- and three-nucleon bound states in a three-dimensional formulation based on spin-momentum operators is extended to nucleon-nucleon scattering. Here the nucleon-nucleon t-matrix is represented by six spin-momentum operators accompanied by six scalar functions of momentum vectors. We present the formulation and provide numerical examples for the deuteron and nucleon-nucleon scattering observables. A comparison to results from a standard partial wave decomposition establishes the reliability of this new formulation., Comment: 34 pages, 9 figures (in 41 eps files)

We extend our approach to incorporate the proton-proton (pp) Coulomb force into the three-nucleon (3N) Faddeev calculations from elastic proton-deuteron (pd) scattering to the breakup process. The main new ingredient is a 3-dimensional screened pp Coulomb t-matrix obtained by a numerical solution of the 3-dimensional Lippmann-Schwinger equation. We demonstrate numerically that the proton-deuteron breakup observables can be determined from the resulting on-shell 3N amplitudes increasing the screening radius. However, contrary to the pd elastic scattering, the screening limit exists only after renormalisation of the pp t-matrices., Comment: 22 pages, 10 eps figures

The 3-dimensional wave function for a sharply cut-off Coulomb potential is analytically derived. The asymptotic form of the related scattering amplitude reveals a failure of the standard renormalization factor which is believed to be generally valid for any type of screening., Comment: 22 pages, 2 tables, 6 eps figures

We propose a novel approach to incorporate the proton-proton (pp) Coulomb force into the three-nucleon (3N) Faddeev calculations. The main new ingredient is a 3-dimensional screened pp Coulomb t-matrix obtained by a numerical solution of the 3-dimensional Lippmann-Schwinger (LS) equation. We demonstrate numerically and provide analytical insight that the elastic proton-deuteron (pd) observables can be determined directly from the resulting on shell 3N amplitude increasing the screening radius. The screening limit exists without the need of renormalisation not only for observables but for the elastic pd amplitude itself., Comment: 33 pages, 4 eps figures. New figure with a description in the Section V and minor text changes have been added. The physical conclusions remain unchanged

We solve the Faddeev equation in an exactly Poincare invariant formulation of the three-nucleon problem. The dynamical input is a relativistic nucleon-nucleon interaction that is exactly on-shell equivalent to the high precision CDBonn NN interaction. S-matrix cluster properties dictate how the two-body dynamics is embedded in the three-nucleon mass operator. We find that for neutron laboratory energies above 20 MeV relativistic effects on Ay are negligible. For energies below 20 MeV dynamical effects lower the nucleon analyzing power maximum slightly by 2% and Wigner rotations lower it further up to 10 % increasing thus disagreement between data and theory. This indicates that three-nucleon forces must provide an even larger increase of the Ay maximum than expected up to now., Comment: 29 pages, 2 ps figures

Present day chiral nucleon-nucleon potentials up to N3LO and three nucleon forces at N2LO are used to analyze nucleon-deuteron radiative capture at deuteron lab energies below E_d= 100 MeV. The differential cross section and the deuteron analyzing powers A_y(d) and A_{yy} are presented and compared to data. The theoretical predictions are obtained in the momentum-space Faddeev approach using the nuclear electromagnetic current operator with exchange currents introduced via the Siegert theorem. The chiral forces provide the same quality of data description as a combination of the two-nucleon AV18 and the three-nucleon Urbana IX interactions. However, the different parametrizations of the chiral potentials lead to broad bands of predictions., 20 pages, 12 ps figures

The proton to proton polarization transfer coefficients K_x^{x'}, K_y^{y'}, K_z^{x'} and the proton to deuteron polarization transfer coefficients K_x^{x'}, K_y^{y'}, K_z^{x'}, K_x^{y'z'}, K_y^{z'z'}, K_z^{y'z'}, K_y^{x'z'} and K_y^{x'x'-y'y'} have been measured in d(\vec p, \vec p)d and d(\vec p, \vec d)p reactions at E^{lab}_p = 22.7 MeV, respectively. The data have been compared to predictions of modern nuclear forces obtained by solving the three-nucleon Faddeev equations in momentum space. Realistic (semi) phenomenological nucleon-nucleon potentials combined with model three-nucleon forces and modern chiral nuclear forces have been used. The AV18, CD Bonn, Nijm I and II nucleon-nucleon interactions have been applied alone or combined with the Tucson-Melbourne 99 three-nucleon force, adjusted separately for each potential to reproduce the triton binding energy. For the AV18 potential also the Urbana IX three-nucleon force have been used. In addition chiral NN potentials in the next-to-leading-order and chiral two- and three-nucleon forces in the next-to-next-to-leading-order have been applied. Only when three-nucleon forces are included a satisfactory description of all data results. For the chiral approach the restriction to the forces in the next-to-leading order is insufficient. Only when going over to the next-to-next-to-leading order one gets a satisfactory description of the data, similar to the one obtained with the (semi) phenomenological forces., 16 pages, 9 figures

We formulate an approximate relativistic framework for an analysis of the 3He(e,e'p)pn and 3He(e,e'n)pp reactions with polarized electrons and 3He in the initial state. Restricting the rescattering series to one term linear in the two-nucleon t-matrix we incorporate various relativistic features when calculating a nuclear current matrix element. These relativistic ingredients encompass the relativistic 3He wave function based on the concept of the Lorentz boosted nucleon-nucleon potential together with the boosted 2N t-matrix, relativistic kinematics and relativistic single-nucleon current operator. This allows us to estimate the magnitude of relativistic effects not included in the standard nonrelativistic approach., Comment: 27 pages, 9 eps figures

We study within the Faddeev framework the \vec{3He} (\vec{e},e' p)d as well as the \vec{3He} (\vec{e},e' p)pn and \vec{3He} (\vec{e},e' n)pp reactions in order to extract information on the proton and neutron polarization in polarized 3He. We achieve clear analytical insight for simplified dynamical assumptions and define conditions for experimental access to important 3He properties. In addition we point to the possibility to measure the electromagnetic proton form factors in the process \vec{3He} (\vec{e},e' p)d which would test the dynamical picture and put limits on medium corrections of the form factors., 38 pages, 22 figures

The usefulness of the spectral function S in the process 3He(e,e'N) has been investigated in a kinematical regime constrained by the conditions that the three-nucleon center-of-mass energy is less than 150 MeV and the magnitude of the three-momentum transfer smaller than 600 MeV/c. Results based on a full treatment of the final state interaction are compared to the spectral function approximation. In the case of proton knockout in the direction of the photon kinematical conditions have been identified where both response functions, RL and RT, can be well approximated by S. These conditions occur for certain low missing momenta and missing energies but not in all cases. So care is required. In case of neutron knockout only RT is a candidate for an approximate treatment by S. In the case of RL the concept of using S is not valid in the studied kinematical regime. This does not exclude the possibility that beyond that regime it might be useful. Possible applications using S for the extraction of electromagnetic form factors of the nucleons are pointed out., Comment: 27 pages, 25 fugures

The process 3He(e,e'n) with polarized electrons and 3He in the initial state is theoretically analyzed with the aim to search for sensitivity to the electric form factor of the neutron, GEn. Faddeev calculations based on five high precision nucleon-nucleon force models are employed and stability versus exchange of the nucleon-nucleon forces is demonstrated., Comment: 7 pages, 3 Postscript figures

The cross section for the $^3$He(e, e$'$d)p reaction has been measured as a function of the missing momentum $p_m$ in q$��$ -constant kinematics at beam energies of 370 and 576 MeV for values of the three-momentum transfer $q$ of 412, 504 and 604 \mevc. The L(+TT), T and LT structure functions have been separated for $q$ = 412 and 504 \mevc. The data are compared to three-body Faddeev calculations, including meson-exchange currents (MEC), and to calculations based on a covariant diagrammatic expansion. The influence of final-state interactions and meson-exchange currents is discussed. The $p_m$-dependence of the data is reasonably well described by all calculations. However, the most advanced Faddeev calculations, which employ the AV18 nucleon-nucleon interaction and include MEC, overestimate the measured cross sections, especially the longitudinal part, and at the larger values of $q$. The diagrammatic approach gives a fair description of the cross section, but under(over)estimates the longitudinal (transverse) structure function., 17 pages, 7 figures

The processes \vec{3He}(\vec{e},e') and \vec{3He}(\vec{e},e'n) are theoretically analyzed with the aim to search for sensitivities in the electric form factor of the neutron, G_E^n. Faddeev calculations based on the high precision NN force AV18 and using consistent MEC's are employed. While the inclusive process is too insensitive, the semi-exclusive one appears promising., Comment: 18 pages, 8 figs, new reference added

The photon and 3He analyzing powers as well as spin correlation coefficients in the semiexclusive three-body photodisintegration of 3He are investigated for incoming photon laboratory energies E=12, 40 and 120 MeV. The nuclear states are obtained by solving three-body Faddeev equations with the AV18 nucleon-nucleon potential alone or supplemented with the UrbanaIX three-nucleon force. Explicit pi- and rho-meson exchange currents are taken into account, but we also compare to other models of the electromagnetic current. In some kinematical conditions we have found strong effects of the three-nucleon force for the 3He analyzing power and spin correlation coefficients, as well strong sensitivities to the choice of the currents. This set of predictions should be a useful guidance for the planning of measurements. In addition, we compare our results for two-body 3He breakup induced by polarized photons with a few existing data., Comment: 23 pages, 16 figures