The nucleon mass in Nf=2 lattice QCD: finite size effects from chiral perturbation theory

Abstract In the framework of relativistic SU(2) f baryon chiral perturbation theory we calculate the volume dependence of the nucleon mass up to and including O ( p 4 ). Since the parameters in the resulting finite size formulae are fixed from the pion mass dependence of the large volume nucleon masses and from phenomenology, we obtain a parameter-free prediction of the finite size effects. We present mass data from the recent N f =2 simulations of the UKQCD and QCDSF Collaborations and compare these data as well as published mass values from the dynamical simulations of the CP-PACS and JLQCD Collaborations with the theoretical expectations. Remarkable agreement between the lattice data and the predictions of chiral perturbation theory in a finite volume is found.