Proton-proton fusion in effective field theory - art. no. 044002

The rate for the fusion process p+p -->d+e(+)+nu (e) is calculated using no nrelativistic effective field theory. Including the four-nucleon derivative interaction, results are obtained in next-to-leading order in the momentum expansion. This reproduces the effects of the effective range parameter. C oulomb interactions between the incoming protons are included nonperturbati vely in a systematic way. The resulting fusion rate is independent of speci fic models and wave functions for the interacting nucleons. At this order i n the effective Lagrangian there is an unknown counterterm which limits the numerical accuracy. Assuming the counterterm to have a natural magnitude, the result is consistent with previous nuclear physics calculations.