Three-pion exchange: A gap in the nucleon-nucleon potential

Abstract
The leading contribution to the three-pion-exchange nucleon-nucleon potential is calculated in the framework of chiral symmetry. It has pseudoscalar and axial components and is dominated by the former, which has a range of about 1.5 fm and tends to enhance the one-pion-exchange potential. The strength of this force does not depend on the pion mass, and hence it survives in the chiral limit.
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