Nucleon and pion electromagnetic form factors in a light-front constituent quark model

Abstract

Nucleon and pion electromagnetic form factors are evaluated in the spacelike region within a light-front constituent quark model, where eigenfunctions of a mass operator, reproducing a large set of hadron energy levels, are adopted and quark form factors are considered in the one-body current. The hadron form factors are sharply affected by the high momentum tail generated in the wave function by the one-gluon-exchange interaction. Useful information on the electromagnetic structure of light constituent quarks can be obtained from the comparison with nucleon and pion experimental data.