Excitation of soft dipole modes in electron scattering

The excitation of soft dipole modes in light nuclei via inelastic electron scattering is investigated. I show that, under the proposed conditions of the forthcoming electron-ion colliders, the scattering cross sections have a direct relation to the scattering by real photons. The advantages of electron scattering over other electromagnetic probes is explored. The response functions for direct breakup are studied with few-body models. The dependence on final-state interactions is discussed. A comparison between direct breakup and collective models is performed. The results of this investigation are important for the planned electron-ion colliders at the GSI and RIKEN facilities.