The single-particle spectra in relativistic Hartree-Fock (RHF) theory are employed to extract shell correction energies with the Strutinsky method. It is found that proper box sizes $R_{\mathrm{box}}$ used in solving the RHF equations are important to extract reliable Strutinsky shell correction energies. An empirical formula to determine $R_{\mathrm{box}}$ is proposed by systematic studies on nuclei over a wide range of nuclear charts, including light, heavy, neutron-deficient, and neutron-rich nuclei. Furthermore, the shell correction energies of Ca, Pb, and Og isotopes and $N=50$ isotones are calculated with proper $R_{\mathrm{box}}$ and their uncertainties due to the uncertainty of $R_{\mathrm{box}}$ are investigated as well. It is found that the results extracted by the Strutinsky method provide a reliable evaluation of the nuclear shell structure information, which can be employed to construct a macroscopic-microscopic mass model in the future.

• Received 23 August 2018
• Revised 2 November 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.98.064323