Recently a symbiotic relationship between particle and nuclear physics has developed, with techniques and ideas from one field fertilizing developments in the other. This work outlines concepts from modern particle physics important to the current understanding of nuclear physics and reviews experiments involving nuclei which have influenced the present particle physics view of the weak interaction. In his discussion, the author summarizes both past and present activity in the field and identifies areas for future work. Familiarity with quantum mechanics is assumed in the presentation of ideas in this book intended for readers at the graduate level and beyond. A major goal of Weak Interactions in Nuclei is to encourage further activity at the intersection of particle and nuclear physics, two path-breaking areas of study in modern physics. Originally published in 1989. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Nuclear physics is presently experiencing a thrust towards fundamental phy sics questions. Low-energy experiments help in testing beyond today's stan dard models of particle physics. The search for finite neutrino masses and neutrino oscillations, for proton decay, rare and forbidden muon and pion de cays, for an electric dipole moment of the neutron denote some of the efforts to test today's theories of grand unification (GUTs, SUSYs, Superstrings, ... ) complementary to the search for new particles and symmetries in high-energy experiments. The close connections between the laws of microphysics, astrophysics and cosmology open further perspectives. This concerns, to mention some of them, properties of exotic nuclei and nuclear matter, and star evolution; the neutrino and the dark matter in the universe; relations between grand unification and evolution of the early universe. The International Symposium on Weak and Electromagnetic Interactions in Nuclei (W.E.LN. 1986)' held in Heidelberg 1-5 July 1986, in conjunction with the 600th anniversary of the University of Heidelberg, brought together experts in the fields of nuclear and particle physics, astrophysics and cosmol ogy.

The fourth edition includes new developments, in particular a new section on the double beta decay including a discussion of the possibility of a neutrinoless decay and its implications for the standard model.

This book shows the usefulness of the nucleus as a laboratory for learning about basic symmetries and fundamental interactions. It is aimed at advanced graduate students and beginning researchers, but should be useful to advanced researchers as well. Nuclear and particle physicists will find it particularly useful.

The interaction between neutrinos and matter is an example of the type classified as weak, and such interactions also allow many elementary particle decays and the beta decay of the nuclei. The development of gauge theories has provided the basis for a complete and consistent account of weak interactions, at the same time displaying their unity with electromagnetism. Gauge theories in this context were first proposed in 1967. Rapid mathematical development took place from 1971, and on this book's publication in 1979, a moderate amount of empirical verification had been achieved.