Nuclear polarization in muonic ²⁰⁸Pb

We calculate nuclear-polarization energy shifts in muonic ²⁰⁸Pb. We employ a relativistic field-theoretical calculation and evaluate the ladder, cross, and seagull terms of the two-photon exchange diagrams in both the Feynman and Coulomb gauges. Gauge independence is very well satisfied with the calculated nuclear-polarization energies. Using these results, we analyze fine-structure splitting energies of muonic ²⁰⁸Pb because of the presence of the persisting discrepancies between experiment and calculation. The present nuclear-polarization energies explain about half of the anomaly in the Δ2p fine-structure splitting energy, and only one-fourth of the anomaly in the Δ3p fine-structure splitting energy.