Hard exclusive processes in the backward region

Abstract

We review the potentialities offered by the study of backward exclusive processes in a new scaling regime, i.e. involving a large -timelike or spacelike- Q2 photon and a baryonic exchange in the t-channel. We recall the concept of Transition Distribution Amplitudes (TDAs) containing unique information on the hadron structure, then discuss how they enter the description of processes such as backward electroproduction of a pion, antiproton-proton annihilations into a dilepton + meson as well as into J/psi + meson. We then discuss first phenomenological studies for processes that are being analysed at JLAB and HERMES or that will be measured by Panda at GSI-FAIR. Finally we present outlooks for their theoretical studies based on approaches such as the pion-cloud model.