Revisiting the concept of nuclear rotation: quantum and classical viewpoints

Nuclear rotation is revisited to seek for a new perspective. Review is made first for the basic concept of the nuclear rotation. Then, the quantization procedure of the rigid-body Hamiltonian is reviewed for a quantum mechanical understanding of the dynamics of rigid-body rotations. A linear rigid body is then investigated and its motion is studied from classical and quantum viewpoints. Finally, an application of the linear rigid-body rotation is attempted for a description of elongated nuclear systems, such as Beryllium 8, a two-alpha-cluster system. (author)