From Nucleons to the Atomic Nucleus: A Short Story

Abstract

In this final chapter, having made a long journey through the exciting subatomic world where nucleons join together under the action of the strong force, we will try to view some of the major organizing elements that give the nucleus such a rich structure. At the same time, we emphasize and illustrate this theme with a number of brief examples. They demonstrate how the story of discovering the various basic features in the atomic nucleus is due, to a great extent, to the constant inventivity of experimentalists. It becomes clear that, whenever new technology has come within reach for probing the internal motion of nucleons in the nucleus, the nucleus has, time after time, shown new features and further elementary modes of nucleon motion. This line of experimental work has been connected largely to the development of new accelerators and detectors (Fig. 8.1), for observing nuclear interaction processes. This combination has led to a better understanding of how nucleons feel the nucleon—nucleon interaction and thereby build up the nuclear many-body system.