We address the issue of whether quasifree single-nucleon knockout measurements carry sufficient information about the nuclear interior. To this end, we present comparisons of the reaction probability densities for $A(e,e^{\text{'}}p)$ and $A(p,2p)$ in quasifree kinematics for the target nuclei ${}^4\mathrm{He}$, ${}^{12}\mathrm{C}$, ${}^{56}\mathrm{Fe}$, and ${}^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$. We adopt a comprehensive framework based on the impulse approximation and on a relativized extension of Glauber multiple-scattering reaction theory in which the medium effects related to short-range correlations (SRCs) are implemented. It is demonstrated that SRCs weaken the effect of attenuation. For light target nuclei, both the quasifree $(p,2p)$ and $(e,e^{\text{'}}p)$ can probe average densities of the same order as nuclear saturation density ${\rho }_0$. For heavy nuclei such as ${}^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$, the probed average densities are smaller than $0.1{\rho }_0$ and the $(e,e^{\text{'}}p)$ reaction is far more efficient in probing the bulk regions than $(p,2p)$.

• Received 7 February 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.83.054601