Dear Colleagues,

In nuclear physics, symmetry energy is an important parameter in the equation of state describing the nuclear structure of heavy nuclei and neutron stars. Symmetry energy characterizes the variation of the binding energy when the neutron to proton ratio of a nuclear system is varied. Symmetry energy plays an important role in nuclear astrophysics, ranging from the structure of nuclei to gravitational collapse to neutron stars. This is one of the most important features of nuclear physics in general, since it is just related to the two-component nature of the nuclear systems. As such, it is one of the most relevant physical parameters that affect the physics of many phenomena and nuclear processes.

Recently, a great amount of interest has been devoted not only to the nuclear matter symmetry energy at saturation density but also to its whole density dependence, which is an essential ingredient for our understanding of many phenomena. To date, the parameters of nuclear symmetry energy are tightly constrained by a concordance achieved from nuclear experiments, astrophysical observations, and ab initio theoretical calculations of neutron matter.

This Special Issue presents a survey of the role and relevance of nuclear symmetry energy in different fields of research and of the accuracy of its determination from the phenomenology and from the microscopic many-body theory. In this Special Issue, analyses of nuclear symmetry energy in different realms of nuclear physics and astrophysics will be given.

In this issue, nuclear symmetry energy in relation to nuclear structure, astrophysics of Neutron Stars and supernovae, and heavy ion collision experiments will be considered, to identify connections between these different fields on the basis of symmetry energy peculiarities.

Prof. Dr. Aziz Rabhi
Prof. Dr. Sidney Avancini
Prof. Dr. Mª Ángeles Pérez García
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• Nuclear symmetry energy
• Equation of state
• Nuclear structure
• Nuclear astrophysics
• Heavy ion physics
• Neutron-rich nuclei
• Nuclear binding energy
• Symmetric nuclear matter
• Neutron stars