Optical Potentials: Microscopic vs. Phenomenological Approaches

In this work we study the performances of our microscopic optical potential [1, 2], derived from nucleon-nucleon chiral potentials at fifth order (N4LO), in comparison with those of a successful non-relativistic phenomenological optical potential in the description of elastic proton scattering data on tin and lead isotopes at energies around and above 200 MeV. Our results indicate that microscopic optical potentials derived from nucleon-nucleon chiral potentials at N4LO can provide reliable predictions for observables of stable and exotic nuclei, even at energies where the robustness of the chiral expansion starts to be questionable.