Microscopic studies of electric dipole resonances in 1p shell nuclei

Recent data on total and partial photonuclear cross sections in the GDR region of the nuclei 6Li to 16O are compared with theoretical predictions, mostly from shell model and continuum shell model studies. The influence of the size of the configuration space, of the adopted residual interaction and of the continuous spectrum on the isovector E1 response is discussed to some detail. The observed trends of the localization, the shape and width, the isospin and the configurational structure of the GDR with increasing 1p shell occupation are related to the microscopic structure of the nuclear ground state. Particular attention is given to the partial (γ, N/sub i/) disintegration channels. Complex-particle emission and isospin mixing in the nuclear states are discussed for a few cases. An attempt is made to bring some systematics also in the evidence on excited-state giant resonances through the 1p shell region. The photonuclear GDR is compared with other giant multipole excitations, mostly for the example of the 14C nucleus. (author)