Nuclear structure studies by the scattering of medium-energy electrons: Final report for the period January 2, 1976-December 31, 1987

In 1976 the University of Massachusetts was in the process of completing nuclear structure investigations by means of electron scattering at the US National Bureau of Standards. In late 1977 it finished the construction of a magnetic deflection system for 180 deg electron scattering for use at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator Center. The results obtained by using this apparatus were used in obtaining information about nuclear convection, spin, and meson exchange currents. A variety of studies over a wide range of nuclear species has been and is still being carried out by these means. In 1984 experiments at much higher momentum transfers were begun at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. Especially short range nuclear phenomena were explored by using the Stanford facilities. For example, the short range details of the wave function of the simplest nucleus, the deuteron, were investigated by means of elastic magnetic scattering of electrons. Current planning is underway to utilize the PEP storage ring at Stanford for internal gas jet target studies. The results of large basis shell calculations have been used in interpreting the experimental results. Theoretical studies of hypernuclei, of relativistic nucleon-nucleon interactions, of weak interactions, and of hypernuclei are continuing