Performing a shell model calculation for heavy nuclei has been a long-standing problem in nuclear physics. Here we propose one possible solution. The central idea of this proposal is to take the advantages of two existing models, the Projected Shell Model (PSM) and the Fermion Dynamical Symmetry Model (FDSM), to construct a multi-shell shell model. The PSM is an efficient method of coupling quasi-particle excitations to the high-spin rotational motion, whereas the FDSM contains a successful truncation scheme for the low-spin collective modes from the spherical to the well-deformed region. The new shell model is expected to describe simultaneously the single-particle and the low-lying collective excitations of all known types, yet keeping the model space tractable even for the heaviest nuclear systems.

14 pages, 1 figure, and 2 tables