Experimental constraints on polarizability corrections to hydrogen hyperfine structure

Area of Science:

• Atomic physics
• Quantum mechanics
• Nuclear physics

Background:

• Hydrogen's ground-state hyperfine splitting is a key observable in atomic physics.
• Precise theoretical calculations are needed to match experimental data.
• Polarizability corrections, specifically inelastic nucleon corrections, are crucial for high-precision predictions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a state-of-the-art evaluation of polarizability corrections to hydrogen's ground-state hyperfine splitting.
• To compare the results with values derived from elastic nucleon corrections.

Main Methods:

• Utilized analytic fits to the most recent experimental data.
• Calculated inelastic nucleon corrections to the hyperfine splitting.

Main Results:

• Determined the polarizability correction value, Delta(pol), to be 1.3 ± 0.3 ppm.
• This value is 1-2 ppm smaller than previously deduced values using elastic corrections.

Conclusions:

• The evaluated polarizability corrections are essential for accurate hydrogen hyperfine splitting predictions.
• Discrepancies with values from elastic corrections highlight the importance of precise inelastic contributions.