Photon-induced two-nucleon knockout reactions to discrete final states

Cross sections and photon asymmetries of the exclusive 16O(\gamma,pn)14N and 16O(\gamma,pp)14C knockout reactions are calculated for transitions to the low-lying discrete final states of the residual nucleus in the photon-energy range between 100 and 400 MeV. Exclusive reactions may represent a test of reaction mechanisms and a promising tool for investigating the dynamics of nucleon pairs in different states. Cross sections and asymmetries for both (\gamma,pn) and (\gamma,pp) turn out to be only slightly affected by short-range correlations and dominated by two-body currents. Therefore, two-nucleon knockout reactions induced by real photons appear well suited to investigate the nuclear current and the selectivity of individual transitions to its different components.