https://doi.org/10.1007/s100500070070
Real and virtual Compton scattering off the nucleon
Institut für Kernphysik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, D-55099, Mainz, Germany
* e-mail: marcvdh@kph.uni-mainz.de
Received:
4
August
2000
Published online: 15 August 2000
A review is given of the very recent developments in the fields of real and virtual Compton scattering off the nucleon. Both real and virtual Compton scattering reactions are discussed at low outgoing photon energy where one accesses polarizabilities of the nucleon. The real Compton scattering at large momentum transfer is discussed which is asymptotically a tool to obtain information on the valence quark wave function of the nucleon. The rapid developments in deeply virtual Compton scattering and associated meson electroproduction reactions at high energy, high photon virtuality and small momentum transfer to the nucleon are discussed. A unified theoretical description of those processes has emerged over the last few years, which gives access to new, generalized parton distributions. The experimental status and perspectives in these fields are also discussed.
PACS: 13.60.Fz Elastic and Compton scattering – / 13.40.-f Electromagnetic processes and properties – / 12.38.Bx Perturbative calculations –
© Società Italiana di Fisica and Springer-Verlag, 2000