Atomic Atrophy Hypothesis for Inducing an Implosive Nuclear Structural Collapse with an Ultra-High Attractive Effect: Selective Removal of a Critical Neutron from the Symmetric Backbone Configuration of a Highly Cohesive Atomic Nucleus
This study proposes a theoretical framework for investigating the response of atomic nuclei to extreme
structural perturbations through the hypothesis of a Critical Nucleon, defined as a nucleon whose
contribution to the collective structural stability of the nucleus is greater than that of the remaining
nucleons. The proposed framework suggests that the removal of such a nucleon may, under specific
structural conditions, trigger a collective reorganization of the nuclear structure that differs qualitatively
from conventional nuclear responses.
To examine this hypothesis, the study introduces a new theoretical quantity termed the Structural
Cohesion Function (Φ) as an indicator of the structural contribution of individual nucleons to nuclear
stability. A mathematical framework consisting of axioms, definitions, and preliminary propositions
is developed to relate neutron separation energy and collective nuclear structure. The study further
proposes the existence of a Critical Structural Threshold, beyond which the nucleus undergoes a
structural phase transition into a different collective configuration. Several theoretical predictions are
presented together with a validation roadmap based on nuclear shell-model calculations, mean-field
approaches, and advanced numerical simulations.
In addition, the study discusses an exploratory phenomenological framework for describing possible
consequences of such structural transitions, emphasizing that these extensions go beyond established
nuclear physics and should be regarded as speculative hypotheses requiring verification through
computational modeling and future experimental investigation. The proposed framework is intended
as a falsifiable research program that introduces new structural descriptors for nuclear stability and
provides a basis for further theoretical and computational studies in nuclear physics
10.33425/2690-8077.1248
Published: 08 Sep, 2026