Experimental Nuclear Physics

The experimental nuclear physics program supports research at the frontiers of nuclear science, including: properties and behavior of nuclei and nuclear matter under extreme conditions, and/or as they relate to astrophysical phenomena; the quark-gluon basis for the structure and dynamics of hadrons and nuclei; phase transitions of nuclear matter from normal nuclear density and temperature to the predicted high-temperature quark-gluon plasma; and basic interactions and fundamental symmetries. This research involves many venues, including low-energy to multi-GeV electrons and photons; intermediate-energy light ions; low-energy to relativistic heavy ions, including radioactive beams; cold and ultra-cold neutrons; as well as non-accelerator-based experiments. The program supports university user groups executing experiments at a large number of laboratories in the United States and abroad, and a national user facility: the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, a superconducting, heavy-ion cyclotron facility at Michigan State University. The program also supports smaller accelerator facilities, such as those at Florida State University and the University of Notre Dame. Some awards are co-funded with other programs in the Physics Division and in other divisions.