Pion and Kaon Form Factor Measurements at the EIC

Developing our understanding of hadronic mass generation mechanisms is one of the three key physics questions for the upcoming Electron-Ion Collider (EIC). From the little that we do understand, we know that mass generation is intricately connected to the internal structure of hadronic systems. Somewhat counter intuitively, it is some of the lightest hadronic objects, the charged pion and kaon, that may be able to fill in the missing piece of the puzzle. One potential window into the internal structure of the charged pion and kaon is their elastic electromagnetic form factors, F_π(Q²) and F_K(Q²). Electromagnetic form factors are fundamental quantities which describe the spatial distribution of partons within a hadron. Determining these form factors, as well as how they vary with Q² is an important step on our road to understanding the internal structure of these objects. The EIC opens up the possibility of studying F_π(Q²) andF_K(Q²) to very high Q². The Q² reach of these measurements is deep into unexplored territory, these cutting edge measurements could help disentangle the mass generation puzzle of QCD. In this talk, I will outline the opportunities and challenges of pion and kaon form factor measurements at the EIC.