Canonical and microcanonical ensemble descriptions of thermal pairing within BCS and quasiparticle RPA

Abstract

We propose a description of pairing properties in finite systems within the canonical and microcanonical ensembles. The approach is derived by solving the BCS and self-consistent quasiparticle random-phase approximation with the Lipkin-Nogami particle-number projection at zero temperature. The obtained eigenvalues are embedded into the canonical and microcanonical ensembles. The results obtained are found in quite good agreement with the exact solutions of the doubly-folded equidistant multilevel pairing model as well as the experimental data for $^{56}$Fe nucleus. The merit of the present approach resides in its simplicity and its application to a wider range of particle number, where the exact solution is impracticable.