π0photoproduction near threshold on hydrogen, deuterium,He3, andHe4

Abstract
Relative measurements of π0 photoproduction yields have been performed on hydrogen, deuterium, He3, and He4, in the region of 1 to 10 MeV above threshold. A simplified distorted-wave impulse approximation model of the four reactions is described; it leads to an overall understanding of the results. Large rescattering effects are brought to evidence in deuterium and He3, making the extraction of precise values for the dipole photoproduction amplitudes E0+ on nucleons strongly dependent on the theoretical description of the processes.