ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we shall discuss the specific characteristics of the atomic nucleus that make it a unique laboratory where different forces and particles meet. Depending on the probe we use to ‘view’ the nucleus different aspects become observable. Using probes (e-, p, π±,...) with an energy such that the quantum mechanical wavelength λ = h/p is of the order of the nucleus, global aspects do show up such that collective and surface effects can be studied. At shorter wavelengths, the A-nucleon system containing Z protons and N neutrons becomes evident. It is this and the above ‘picture’ that will mainly be of use in the present discussion. Using even shorter wavelengths, the mesonic degrees and excited nucleon configurations (A,...) become observable. At the extreme high-energy side, the internal structure of the nucleons shows up in the dynamics of an interacting quark-gluon system (figure 1.1).
