High-Resolution Experiments with Exotic Nuclei and Mesic Atoms

Pioneering heavy-ion research and the limits of stability of atoms and nuclei were central research topics of Walter Greiner. His ideas and directions have inspired and determined the experimental efforts to design novel separators and high-resolution spectrometers to produce and study the most exotic nuclei. This leads directly to the discovery of new nuclides, new decay modes and shapes, and unexspected shell effects near the driplines. Already in his early studies, Walter Greiner investigated mesic atoms which are still of basic interests to understand the strong interaction of matter and the mass modification of bound mesons. The existence of deeply-bound pionic states in heavy atoms was an important question in the Greiner School too. It was answered with a discovery experiment with the fragment separator FRS. In this article, we review characteristic experimental results inspired by the far-reaching ideas of Walter and his colleagues measured with the FRS at GSI. New experimental perspectives with the Super-FRS will also be adressed.