Effects of Nuclear Structure on Quasi-fission

The quasi-fission mechanism hinders fusion of heavy systems because of a mass flow between the reactants, leading to a re-separation of more symmetric fragments in the exit channel. A good understanding of the competition between fusion and quasi-fission mechanisms is expected to be of great help to optimize the formation and study of heavy and superheavy nuclei. Quantum microscopic models, such as the time-dependent Hartree-Fock approach, allow for a treatment of all degrees of freedom associated to the dynamics of each nucleon. This provides a description of the complex reaction mechanisms, such as quasi-fission, with no parameter adjusted on reaction mechanisms. In particular, the role of the deformation and orientation of a heavy target, as well as the entrance channel magicity and isospin are investigated with theoretical and experimental approaches.Comment: Invited talk to NSRT12. To be published in Eur. Phys. J. Web of Con

The Random Discrete Action for 2-Dimensional Spacetime

A one-parameter family of random variables, called the Discrete Action, is defined for a 2-dimensional Lorentzian spacetime of finite volume. The single parameter is a discreteness scale. The expectation value of this Discrete Action is calculated for various regions of 2D Minkowski spacetime. When a causally convex region of 2D Minkowski spacetime is divided into subregions using null lines the mean of the Discrete Action is equal to the alternating sum of the numbers of vertices, edges and faces of the null tiling, up to corrections that tend to zero as the discreteness scale is taken to zero. This result is used to predict that the mean of the Discrete Action of the flat Lorentzian cylinder is zero up to corrections, which is verified. The ``topological'' character of the Discrete Action breaks down for causally convex regions of the flat trousers spacetime that contain the singularity and for non-causally convex rectangles.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures, Typos correcte

Are Causality Violations Undesirable?

Causality violations are typically seen as unrealistic and undesirable features of a physical model. The following points out three reasons why causality violations, which Bonnor and Steadman identified even in solutions to the Einstein equation referring to ordinary laboratory situations, are not necessarily undesirable. First, a space-time in which every causal curve can be extended into a closed causal curve is singularity free--a necessary property of a globally applicable physical theory. Second, a causality-violating space-time exhibits a nontrivial topology--no closed timelike curve (CTC) can be homotopic among CTCs to a point, or that point would not be causally well behaved--and nontrivial topology has been explored as a model of particles. Finally, if every causal curve in a given space-time passes through an event horizon, a property which can be called "causal censorship", then that space-time with event horizons excised would still be causally well behaved.Comment: Accepted in October 2008 by Foundations of Physics. Latex2e, 6 pages, no figures. Presented at a seminar at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. Version 2 was co-winner of the QMUL CTC Essay Priz

Obstruction Results in Quantization Theory

We define the quantization structures for Poisson algebras necessary to generalise Groenewold and Van Hove's result that there is no consistent quantization for the Poisson algebra of Euclidean phase space. Recently a similar obstruction was obtained for the sphere, though surprising enough there is no obstruction to the quantization of the torus. In this paper we want to analyze the circumstances under which such obstructions appear. In this context we review the known results for the Poisson algebras of Euclidean space, the sphere and the torus.Comment: 34 pages, Latex. To appear in J. Nonlinear Scienc

Topological and geometrical restrictions, free-boundary problems and self-gravitating fluids

Let (P1) be certain elliptic free-boundary problem on a Riemannian manifold (M,g). In this paper we study the restrictions on the topology and geometry of the fibres (the level sets) of the solutions f to (P1). We give a technique based on certain remarkable property of the fibres (the analytic representation property) for going from the initial PDE to a global analytical characterization of the fibres (the equilibrium partition condition). We study this analytical characterization and obtain several topological and geometrical properties that the fibres of the solutions must possess, depending on the topology of M and the metric tensor g. We apply these results to the classical problem in physics of classifying the equilibrium shapes of both Newtonian and relativistic static self-gravitating fluids. We also suggest a relationship with the isometries of a Riemannian manifold.Comment: 36 pages. In this new version the analytic representation hypothesis is proved. Please address all correspondence to D. Peralta-Sala

Resonances of 6He via the 8He(p,t)6He reaction

CERN-Proceedings-2010-001 available at http://www.fluka.org/Varenna2009/procmat.htmInternational audienceWe investigated the low-lying spectroscopy of 6He via the 2-neutron transfer reaction induced by the 8He SPIRAL beam at 15.4 A.MeV on a proton-rich target. The light charged recoil particles produced by the direct reactions were measured using theMUST2 Si-strip telescope array. Two new resonances were observed above the known 2+ state in 6He, and the angular momentum transfer was deduced through the analysis of the angular distributions. Results are discussed in comparison with the recent calculations of various nuclear structure theories which include the coupling to the continuum technique and to the ones which give an understanding of the cluster correlations in the light weakly-bound nuclei

Resonances of 6He via the 8He(p,t)6He reaction

We investigated the low-lying spectroscopy of 6He via the 2-neutron transfer reaction induced by the 8He SPIRAL beam at 15.4 A.MeV on a proton-rich target. The light charged recoil particles produced by the direct reactions were measured using theMUST2 Si-strip telescope array. Two new resonances were observed above the known 2+ state in 6He, and the angular momentum transfer was deduced through the analysis of the angular distributions. Results are discussed in comparison with the recent calculations of various nuclear structure theories which include the coupling to the continuum technique and to the ones which give an understanding of the cluster correlations in the light weakly-bound nuclei

Study of 124^{124}Sn+136^{136}Xe fusion-evaporation: analysis of a rare-event experiment

7 pages, 4 figuresFusion-evaporation in the $^{124}$Sn+$^{136}$Xe system is studied using a high intensity xenon beam provided by the Ganil accelerator and the LISE3 wien filter for the selection of the products. Due to the mass symmetry of the entrance system, the rejection of the beam by the spectrometer was of the order of $5times10^8$. We have thus performed a detailed statistical analysis to estimate random events and to infer the fusion-evaporation cross sections. No signicant decay events were detected and upper limit cross sections of 172~pb, 87~pb and 235~pb were deduced for the synthesis of $^{257}$Rf, $^{258}$Rf and $^{259}$Rf, respectively

Static perfect fluids with Pant-Sah equations of state

We analyze the 3-parameter family of exact, regular, static, spherically symmetric perfect fluid solutions of Einstein's equations (corresponding to a 2-parameter family of equations of state) due to Pant and Sah and "rediscovered" by Rosquist and the present author. Except for the Buchdahl solutions which are contained as a limiting case, the fluids have finite radius and are physically realistic for suitable parameter ranges. The equations of state can be characterized geometrically by the property that the 3-metric on the static slices, rescaled conformally with the fourth power of any linear function of the norm of the static Killing vector, has constant scalar curvature. This local property does not require spherical symmetry; in fact it simplifies the the proof of spherical symmetry of asymptotically flat solutions which we recall here for the Pant-Sah equations of state. We also consider a model in Newtonian theory with analogous geometric and physical properties, together with a proof of spherical symmetry of the asymptotically flat solutions.Comment: 32 p., Latex, minor changes and correction

The nuclear energy density functional formalism

The present document focuses on the theoretical foundations of the nuclear energy density functional (EDF) method. As such, it does not aim at reviewing the status of the field, at covering all possible ramifications of the approach or at presenting recent achievements and applications. The objective is to provide a modern account of the nuclear EDF formalism that is at variance with traditional presentations that rely, at one point or another, on a {\it Hamiltonian-based} picture. The latter is not general enough to encompass what the nuclear EDF method represents as of today. Specifically, the traditional Hamiltonian-based picture does not allow one to grasp the difficulties associated with the fact that currently available parametrizations of the energy kernel $E[g',g]$ at play in the method do not derive from a genuine Hamilton operator, would the latter be effective. The method is formulated from the outset through the most general multi-reference, i.e. beyond mean-field, implementation such that the single-reference, i.e. "mean-field", derives as a particular case. As such, a key point of the presentation provided here is to demonstrate that the multi-reference EDF method can indeed be formulated in a {\it mathematically} meaningful fashion even if $E[g',g]$ does {\it not} derive from a genuine Hamilton operator. In particular, the restoration of symmetries can be entirely formulated without making {\it any} reference to a projected state, i.e. within a genuine EDF framework. However, and as is illustrated in the present document, a mathematically meaningful formulation does not guarantee that the formalism is sound from a {\it physical} standpoint. The price at which the latter can be enforced as well in the future is eventually alluded to.Comment: 64 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Euroschool Lecture Notes in Physics Vol.IV, Christoph Scheidenberger and Marek Pfutzner editor