Nuclear structure and reactions from ab initio calculations

An overarching goal of nuclear physics is to arrive at the comprehensive understanding – in terms of the laws of quantum mechanics and the underlying theory of the strong force (quantum chromodynamics) – of atomic nuclei and their interactions, and to use this understanding to accurately predict nuclear properties that are difficult to measure or simply inaccessible to experiment, but play a fundamental role in explaining the inner workings of the Universe or are critical to the national security. I will present first-principles calculations of nuclear structural and reaction properties to reveal the imprints of the strong nuclear force in rare isotopes with large proton-neutron asymmetry located at the edges of nuclear stability (the drip-lines) and to predict thermonuclear reaction rates of interest for stellar nucleosynthesis and fusion energy technology.