Perspectives on few-body cluster structures in exotic nuclei

TL;DR

This paper discusses the significance of few-body cluster structures in exotic nuclei, emphasizing their experimental relevance at FRIB and the need for combined theoretical and experimental efforts to understand these phenomena.

Contribution

It compiles diverse perspectives from a 2022 FRIB program, highlighting recent advances and collaborative approaches in studying few-body cluster structures in exotic nuclei.

Findings

Identification of key experimental signatures of cluster states

Insights into the role of nuclear forces in cluster formation

Highlighting the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration

Abstract

It is a fascinating phenomenon in nuclear physics that states with a pronounced few-body structure can emerge from the complex dynamics of many nucleons. Such halo or cluster states often appear near the boundaries of nuclear stability. As such, they are an important part of the experimental program beginning at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB). A concerted effort of theory and experiment is necessary both to analyze experiments involving effective few-body states, as well as to constrain and refine theories of the nuclear force in light of new data from these experiments. As a contribution to exactly this effort, this paper compiles a collection of ``perspectives'' that emerged out of the Topical Program ``Few-body cluster structures in exotic nuclei and their role in FRIB experiments'' that was held at FRIB in August 2022 and brought together theorists and experimentalists working on this topic.