Frontier of quark-nuclear physics at SPring-8 and nuclear data

A new facility for GeV γ-ray beams in an energy range of 1.5-3.5 GeV has been constructed for developing physics with photo-nuclear reactions at SPring-8. The GeV γ-rays are produced via the inverse Compton scattering process, and are used to study the sub-nucleonic structure of the nucleon via the productions of φ and K⁺ mesons. This SPring-8 project offers an unique opportunity to study the nucleon structure in view of the quark physics. The recent experimental results to observe φ and K⁺ mesons are discussed to look for the physics in relation to strangeness quarks in nucleon. A new beam line for MeV γ-rays at SPring-8 to give new possibilities for the basic science, astrophysics, and nuclear structure studies is discussed. (author)