Prescission neutron multiplicity and fission probability from Langevin dynamics of nuclear fission

A theoretical model of one-body nuclear friction which was developed earlier, namely the chaos-weighted wall formula, is applied to a dynamical description of compound nuclear decay in the framework of the Langevin equation coupled with statistical evaporation of light particles and photons. We have used both the usual wall formula friction and its chaos-weighted version in the Langevin equation to calculate the fission probability and prescission neutron multiplicity for the compound nuclei $^{178}$W, $^{188}$Pt, $^{200}$Pb, $^{213}$Fr, $^{224}$Th, and $^{251}$Es. We have also obtained the contributions of the presaddle and postsaddle neutrons to the total prescission multiplicity. A detailed analysis of our results leads us to conclude that the chaos-weighted wall formula friction can adequately describe the fission dynamics in the presaddle region. This friction, however, turns out to be too weak to describe the postsaddle dynamics properly. This points to the need for a suitable explanation for the enhanced neutron emission in the postsaddle stage of nuclear fission.Comment: RevTex, 14 pages including 5 Postscript figures, results improved by using a different potential, conclusions remain unchanged, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Barrier Distributions as a Tool to Investigate Fusion and Fission

The recent availability of precisely measured fusion cross-sections has enabled the extraction of a representation of the distribution of barriers encountered during fusion. These representations, obtained from a variety of reactions, provide a direct observation of how the structure of the fusing nuclei changes the inter-nuclear potential landscape, thus affecting the fusion probability. Recent experiments showing the effects of static quadrupole and hexadecapole deformation, single-- and double-phonon states, transfer of nucleons between two nuclei, and high lying excited states are reviewed. The application of these concepts to the explanation of the anomalous fission-fragment anisotropies observed following reactions with actinides is discussed.Comment: 12 pages, To be published in the Proceedings of the NN 97 Conference, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, June 1997 (Nucl. Phys. A

Influence of entrance-channel magicity and isospin on quasi-fission

The role of spherical quantum shells in the competition between fusion and quasi-fission is studied for reactions forming heavy elements. Measurements of fission fragment mass distributions for different reactions leading to similar compound nuclei have been made near the fusion barrier. In general, more quasi-fission is observed for reactions with non-magic nuclei. However, the $^{40}$Ca+$^{208}$Pb reaction is an exception, showing strong evidence for quasi-fission, though both nuclei are doubly magic. Time-dependent Hartree-Fock calculations predict fast equilibration of $N/Z$ in the two fragments early in the collision. This transfer of nucleons breaks the shell effect, causing this reaction to behave more like a non-magic one in the competition between fusion and quasi-fission. Future measurements of fission in reactions with exotic beams should be able to test this idea with larger $N/Z$ asymmetries.Comment: accepted for publication in Physics Letters

Quasi-fission reactions as a probe of nuclear viscosity

Fission fragment mass and angular distributions were measured from the ^{64}Ni+^{197}Au reaction at 418 MeV and 383 MeV incident energy. A detailed data analysis was performed, using the one-body dissipation theory implemented in the code HICOL. The effect of the window and the wall friction on the experimental observables was investigated. Friction stronger than one-body was also considered. The mass and angular distributions were consistent with one-body dissipation. An evaporation code DIFHEAT coupled to HICOL was developed in order to predict reaction time scales required to describe available data on pre-scission neutron multiplicities. The multiplicity data were again consistent with one-body dissipation. The cross-sections for touch, capture and quasi-fission were also obtained.Comment: 25 pages REVTeX, 3 tables, 13 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev

Sub-barrier capture with quantum diffusion approach: actinide-based reactions

With the quantum diffusion approach the behavior of capture cross sections and mean-square angular momenta of captured systems are revealed in the reactions with deformed nuclei at subbarrier energies. The calculated results are in a good agreement with existing experimental data. With decreasing bombarding energy under the barrier the external turning point of the nucleusnucleus potential leaves the region of short-range nuclear interaction and action of friction. Because of this change of the regime of interaction, an unexpected enhancement of the capture cross section is expected at bombarding energies far below the Coulomb barrier. This effect is shown its worth in the dependence of mean-square angular momentum of captured system on the bombarding energy. From the comparison of calculated and experimental capture cross sections, the importance of quasifission near the entrance channel is shown for the actinide-based reactions leading to superheavy nuclei.Comment: 11 pages, 16 figures, Regular Articl

Fission Hindrance in hot 216Th: Evaporation Residue Measurements

The fusion evaporation-residue cross section for 32S+184W has been measured at beam energies of E_beam = 165, 174, 185, 196, 205, 215, 225, 236, 246,and 257 MeV using the ATLAS Fragment Mass Analyzer. The data are compared with Statistical Model calculations and it is found that a nuclear dissipation strength, which increases with excitation energy, is required to reproduce the excitation function. A comparison with previously published data show that the dissipation strength depends strongly on the shell structure of the nuclear system.Comment: 15 pages 9 figure

Collinear cluster tripartition as sequential binary fission in the 235^{235}U(nth_{\rm th},f) reaction

The mechanism leading to the formation of the observed products of the collinear cluster tripartition is carried out within the framework of the model based on the dinuclear system concept. The yield of fission products is calculated using the statistical model based on the driving potentials for the fissionable system. The minima of potential energy of the decaying system correspond to the charge numbers of the products which are produced with large probabilities in the sequential fission (partial case of the collinear cluster tripartition) of the compound nucleus. The realization of this mechanism supposes the asymmetric fission channel as the first stage of sequential mechanism. It is shown that only the use of the driving potential calculated by the binding energies with the shell correction allows us to explain the yield of the true ternary fission products. The theoretical model is applied to research collinear cluster tripartition in the reaction $^{235}$U(n$_{\rm th}$,f). Calculations showed that in the first stage of this fission reaction, the isotopes $^{82}$Ge and $^{154}$Nd are formed with relatively large probabilities and in the second stage of sequential fission of the isotope Nd mainly Ni and Ge are formed. This is in agreement with the yield of the isotope $^{68}$Ni which is observed as the product of the collinear cluster tripartition in the experiment.Comment: 20 pages, 9 figure

Recent experimental results in sub- and near-barrier heavy ion fusion reactions

Recent advances obtained in the field of near and sub-barrier heavy-ion fusion reactions are reviewed. Emphasis is given to the results obtained in the last decade, and focus will be mainly on the experimental work performed concerning the influence of transfer channels on fusion cross sections and the hindrance phenomenon far below the barrier. Indeed, early data of sub-barrier fusion taught us that cross sections may strongly depend on the low-energy collective modes of the colliding nuclei, and, possibly, on couplings to transfer channels. The coupled-channels (CC) model has been quite successful in the interpretation of the experimental evidences. Fusion barrier distributions often yield the fingerprint of the relevant coupled channels. Recent results obtained by using radioactive beams are reported. At deep sub-barrier energies, the slope of the excitation function in a semi-logarithmic plot keeps increasing in many cases and standard CC calculations over-predict the cross sections. This was named a hindrance phenomenon, and its physical origin is still a matter of debate. Recent theoretical developments suggest that this effect, at least partially, may be a consequence of the Pauli exclusion principle. The hindrance may have far-reaching consequences in astrophysics where fusion of light systems determines stellar evolution during the carbon and oxygen burning stages, and yields important information for exotic reactions that take place in the inner crust of accreting neutron stars.Comment: 40 pages, 63 figures, review paper accepted for EPJ