Measurements of neutron skin in calcium and lead

Measurement of the parity-violating electron scattering asymmetry from ${}^{208}$Pb has demonstrated a new opportunity at Jefferson Lab to measure the weak charge form factor and hence pin down the neutron radius in nuclei in a relatively clean and model-independent way. This is because the Z boson of the weak interaction couples primarily to neutrons. We will describe the PREX and CREX experiments on ${}^{208}$Pb and ${}^{48}$Ca respectively. PREX-I ran in 2010, and CREX and a second run of PREX are currently in preparation. These are both doubly-magic nuclei whose first excited state can be discriminated by the high resolution spectrometers at JLab. The heavier lead nucleus, with a neutron excess, provides an interpretation of the neutron skin thickness in terms of properties of bulk neutron matter. For the lighter ${}^{48}$Ca nucleus, which is also rich in neutrons, microscopic nuclear theory calculations are feasible and are sensitive to poorly constrained 3-neutron forces. The measuements are a fundamental test of nuclear structure with applications to heavy ion research and neutron stars.