Self-Consistent Field Calculation of the Nuclear Boundary Diffuseness

A lower limit to the nuclear boundary diffuseness parameter $\sigma$, defined by fitting to the density a function of the form $\rho ={\rho }_0{\{1+\exp [\frac{\mathrm{}(r-a)\mathrm{}}{\sigma }\left]\right\}}^{-1\mathrm{}}$, has been estimated by carrying out the first stage of a self-consistent field calculation. The result is in agreement with present experiments, but it is expected that succeeding calculations will yield an appreciably larger result.