Variations of nuclear binding with quark masses

Abstract

We investigate the variation with light quark mass of the mass of the nucleon as well as the masses of the mesons commonly used in a one-boson-exchange model of the nucleon-nucleon force. Care is taken to evaluate the meson mass shifts at the kinematic point relevant to that problem. Using these results, the corresponding changes in the energy of the 1 S0 anti-bound state, the binding energies of the deuteron, triton and selected finite nuclei are evaluated using a one-boson exchange model. The results are discussed in the context of possible corrections to the standard scenario for big bang nucleosynthesis in the case where, as suggested by recent observations of quasar absorption spectra, the quark masses may have changed over the age of the Universe.