Pion Theory of Relativistic Nucleon-Nucleon Interaction

Abstract

The one- and two-pion-exchange contributions to the nucleon-nucleon interaction, which seem to predominate outside the phenomenological core, are investigated in the exact relativistic form up to fourth order in the pion-nucleon coupling constant. It is shown that the fourth order radiative correction to the usual one-pion-exchange interaction is not negligible for larger scattering angles and higher energies. Further, the fourth-order two-pion-exchange interaction is found to contain appreciable relativistic effects, and in particular the relativistic spin-orbit interaction is found to be larger than the nonrelativistic estimates. These results can be expected to yield a more precise determination of the role of the one- and two-pion-exchange interactions in nucleon-nucleon scattering.