Frontiers of Nuclear Structure Physics *

Atomic nuclei constitute unique many body systems of strongly interacting fermions. Their properties and structure are of paramount importance in many areas of physics. Phenomena encountered in nuclei share basic ingredients with other mesoscopic systems, and nuclei continue to offer unique laboratories to study these phenomena.

The structure of nuclei far from the stability line is a central theme of research in Nuclear Physics. Key to this program has been the worldwide development of radioactive beam facilities and novel detector systems, which provide the tools needed to produce and study these exotic nuclei.

Some of the interesting aspects currently being addressed concern the role played by different parts of the nuclear force in the evolution of shell structure and collectivity with isospin, and the effects of weak binding. In this talk I will present selected examples of recent results that shed light on these topics.

I will end the presentation with a short review of the gamma-ray tracking technique, that marks a major advance in the development of γ-ray detector systems and can provide order-of-magnitude gains in sensitivity compared to existing arrays. A 4π tracking-array will be a powerful instrument needed in a broad range of experiments that will play an essential role in addressing the intellectual challenges of low-energy nuclear science. Developments of these instruments are underway both in the US (GRETINA/GRETA) and Europe (AGATA).

.*This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. DOE, Office of Science, Office of Nuclear Physics, under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725