QCD symmetries in eta and etaprime mesic nuclei

Abstract

We discuss the role of QCD symmetries and confinement in understanding eta and etaprime mesic nuclei. Eta and etaprime bound states in nuclei are sensitive to the flavour-singlet component in the meson. The bigger the singlet component, the more attraction and the greater the binding. Recent results on the etaprime mass in nuclei from the CBELSA/TAPS collaboration are very similar to the prediction of the Quark Meson Coupling model. In the model eta-etaprime mixing induces a factor of two enhancement of the eta-nucleon scattering length relative to the prediction with a pure octet eta, with real part about 0.8 fm.

12 pages, invited talk at the Second International Symposium on Mesic Nuclei, Cracow, Poland, September 22-25 2013