Near-threshold measurement of the 4He(g,n) reaction

A near-threshold 4He(g,n) cross-section measurement has been performed at MAX-lab. Tagged photons from 23 < Eg < 42 MeV were directed toward a liquid 4He target, and neutrons were detected by time-of-flight in two liquid-scintillator arrays. Seven-point angular distributions were measured for eight photon energies. The results are compared to experimental data measured at comparable energies and Recoil-Corrected Continuum Shell Model, Resonating Group Method, and recent Hyperspherical-Harmonic Expansion calculations. The angle-integrated cross-section data is peaked at a photon energy of about 28 MeV, in disagreement with the value recommended by Calarco, Berman, and Donnelly in 1983.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, some revisions, submitted to Physics Letters

Self-energy of Lambda in finite nuclei

The self--energy of the strange baryon $\Lambda$ in $^{17}$O is calculated using a microscopic many--body approach which accounts for correlations beyond the mean--field or Hartree--Fock approximation. The non-locality and energy-dependence of the $\Lambda$ self--energy is discussed and the effects on the bound and scattering states are investigated. For the nucleon--hyperon interaction, we use the potential models of the J\"{u}lich and Nijmegen groups.Comment: 17 pages, Revtex Latex style, 7 figs include

Novel Weak Decays in Doubly Strange Systems

The strangeness-changing ($\Delta S = 1$) weak baryon-baryon interaction is studied through the nonmesonic weak decay of double-$\Lambda$ hypernuclei. Besides the usual nucleon-induced decay $\Lambda N \to N N$ we discuss novel hyperon-induced decay modes $\Lambda \Lambda \to \Lambda N$ and $\Lambda \Lambda \to \Sigma N$. These reactions provide unique access to the exotic $\Lambda \Lambda$K and $\Lambda \Sigma$K vertices which place new constraints on Chiral Pertubation Theory ($\chi$PT) in the weak SU(3) sector. Within a meson-exchange framework, we use the pseudoscalar $\pi,\eta,K$ octet for the long-range part while parametrizing the short-range part through the vector mesons $\rho, \omega, K^*$. Realistic baryon-baryon forces for the $S=0,-1$ and -2 sectors account for the strong interaction in the initial and final states. For $^6_{\Lambda \Lambda}$He the new hyperon-induced decay modes account for up to 4% of the total nonmesonic decay rate. Predictions are made for all possible nonmesonic decay modes.Comment: 19 pages, 2 ps figures, 9 table

Final State Interactions in Hypernuclear Decay

We present an update of the One-Meson-Exchange (OME) results for the weak decay of s- and p-shell hypernuclei (Ref. Phys. Rev. C {\bf 56}, 339 (1997)), paying special attention to the role played by final state interactions between the emitted nucleons. The present study also corrects for a mistake in the inclusion of the $K$ and $K^*$ exchange mechanisms, which substantially increases the ratio of neutron-induced to proton-induced transitions, $\Gamma_n/\Gamma_p$. With the most up-to-date model ingredients, we find that the OME approach is able to describe very satisfactorily most of the measured observables, including the ratio $\Gamma_n/\Gamma_p$.Comment: 20 pages, 2 eps figure

Phenomenological Lambda-Nuclear Interactions

Variational Monte Carlo calculations for ${_{\Lambda}^4}H$ (ground and excited states) and ${_{\Lambda}^5}He$ are performed to decipher information on ${\Lambda}$-nuclear interactions. Appropriate operatorial nuclear and ${\Lambda}$-nuclear correlations have been incorporated to minimize the expectation values of the energies. We use the Argonne $\upsilon_{18}$ two-body NN along with the Urbana IX three-body NNN interactions. The study demonstrates that a large part of the splitting energy in ${_{\Lambda}^4}H$ ($0^+-1^+$) is due to the three-body ${\Lambda}$ NN forces. $_{\Lambda}^{17}O$ hypernucleus is analyzed using the {\it s}-shell results. $\Lambda$ binding to nuclear matter is calculated within the variational framework using the Fermi-Hypernetted-Chain technique. There is a need to correctly incorporate the three-body ${\Lambda}$ NN correlations for $\Lambda$ binding to nuclear matter.Comment: 18 pages (TeX), 2 figure

On the Surface Structure of Strange Superheavy Nuclei

Bound, strange, neutral superheavy nuclei, stable against strong decay, may exist. A model effective field theory calculation of the surface energy and density of such systems is carried out assuming vector meson couplings to conserved currents and scalar couplings fit to data where it exists. The non-linear relativistic mean field equations are solved assuming local baryon sources. The approach is calibrated through a successful calculation of the known nuclear surface tension.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure

Gamow Shell Model Description of Weakly Bound Nuclei and Unbound Nuclear States

We present the study of weakly bound, neutron-rich nuclei using the nuclear shell model employing the complex Berggren ensemble representing the bound single-particle states, unbound Gamow states, and the non-resonant continuum. In the proposed Gamow Shell Model, the Hamiltonian consists of a one-body finite depth (Woods-Saxon) potential and a residual two-body interaction. We discuss the basic ingredients of the Gamow Shell Model. The formalism is illustrated by calculations involving {\it several} valence neutrons outside the double-magic core: $^{6-10}$He and $^{18-22}$O.Comment: 19 pages, 20 encapsulated PostScript figure

New Discrete Basis for Nuclear Structure Studies

A complete discrete set of spherical single-particle wave functions for studies of weakly-bound many-body systems is proposed. The new basis is obtained by means of a local-scale point transformation of the spherical harmonic oscillator wave functions. Unlike the harmonic oscillator states, the new wave functions decay exponentially at large distances. Using the new basis, characteristics of weakly-bound orbitals are analyzed and the ground state properties of some spherical doubly-magic nuclei are studied. The basis of the transformed harmonic oscillator is a significant improvement over the harmonic oscillator basis, especially in studies of exotic nuclei where the coupling to the particle continuum is important.Comment: 13 pages, RevTex, 6 p.s. figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.