Cooper pair correlations and energetic knock-out reactions

TL;DR

This paper reviews two-nucleon removal reactions at intermediate energies as a tool for exploring nucleon correlations in exotic and stable nuclei, highlighting future research directions.

Contribution

It provides an overview of two-nucleon knock-out reactions and discusses their potential to probe nucleon correlations in various nuclei.

Findings

Reactions can reveal nucleon pairing correlations.

Potential to study exotic nuclei.

Future experiments needed for validation.

Abstract

Two-nucleon removal (or knock-out) reactions at intermediate energies are a developing tool for both nuclear spectroscopy and for the study of certain nucleon correlations in very exotic and some stable nuclei. We present an overview of these reactions with specific emphasis on the nature of the two-nucleon correlations that can be probed. We outline future possibilities and tests needed to fully establish these sensitivities.