Radiative corrections and parity nonconservation in heavy atoms

Abstract

The self-energy and the vertex radiative corrections to the effect of parity nonconservation in heavy atoms are calculated analytically in orders Z alpha^2 and Z^2 alpha^3 ln(lambda_C/r_0), where lambda_C and r_0 being the Compton wavelength and the nuclear radius, respectively. The value of the radiative correction is -0.85% for Cs and -1.41% for Tl. Using these results we have performed analysis of the experimental data on atomic parity nonconservation. The obtained values of the nuclear weak charge, Q_W=-72.90(28)_{exp}(35)_{theor} for Cs, and Q_W=-116.7(1.2)_{exp}(3.4)_{theor} for Tl, agree with predictions of the standard model. As an application of our approach we have also calculated analytically dependence of the Lamb shift on the finite nuclear size.