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F. M. Nunes

Publications and source records attributed to F. M. Nunes.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
arXiv2007

Three-body description of direct nuclear reactions: Comparison with the continuum discretized coupled channels method

The continuum discretized coupled channels (CDCC) method is compared to the exact solution of the three-body Faddeev equations in momentum space. We present results for: i) elastic and breakup observables of d-12C at E_d=56 MeV, ii) elastic scattering of d-58Ni at E_d=80 MeV, and iii) elastic, breakup and transfer observables for 11Be+p at E_{11Be}/A=38.4 MeV. Our comparative studies show that, in the first two cases, the CDCC method is a good approximation to the full three-body Faddeev solution, but for the 11Be exotic nucleus, depending on the observable or the kinematic regime, it may miss out some of the dynamic three-body effects that appear through the explicit coupling to the transfer channel.

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arXiv2007

On the measurement of B(E2, 0+ -> 2+) using intermediate-energy Coulomb excitation

Coulomb excitation is a standard method used to extract quadrupole excitation strengths of even-even nuclei. In typical analyses the reaction is assumed to be one-step, Coulomb only, and is treated within a semi-classical model. In this work, fully-quantal coupled-channel calculations are performed for three test cases in order to determine the importance of multi-step effects, nuclear contributions, feeding from other states and corrections to the semi-classical approximation. We study the excitation of 30S, 58Ni and 78Kr on 197Au at ~ 50 AMeV. We find that nuclear effects may contribute more than 10% and that feeding contributions can be larger than 15%. These corrections do not alter significantly the published B(E2) values, however an additional theoretical error of up to 13% should be added to the experimental uncertainty if the semi-classical model is used. This theoretical error is reduced to less than 7% when performing a quantal coupled-channel analysis.

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arXiv2007

B(E1) Strengths from Coulomb Excitation of 11Be

The $B$(E1;$1/2^+\to1/2^-$) strength for $^{11}$Be has been extracted from intermediate energy Coulomb excitation measurements, over a range of beam energies using a new reaction model, the extended continuum discretized coupled channels (XCDCC) method. In addition, a measurement of the excitation cross section for $^{11}$Be+$^{208}$Pb at 38.6 MeV/nucleon is reported. The $B$(E1) strength of 0.105(12) e$^2$fm$^2$ derived from this measurement is consistent with those made previously at 60 and 64 MeV/nucleon, i n contrast to an anomalously low result obtained at 43 MeV/nucleon. By coupling a multi-configuration description of the projectile structure with realistic reaction theory, the XCDCC model provides for the first time a fully quantum mechanical description of Coulomb excitation. The XCDCC calculations reveal that the excitation process involves significant contributions from nuclear, continuum, and higher-order effects. An analysis of the present and two earlier intermediate energy measurements yields a combined B(E1) strength of 0.105(7) e$^2$fm$^2$. This value is in good agreement with the value deduced independently from the lifetime of the $1/2^-$ state in $^{11}$Be, and has a comparable p recision.

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arXiv2007

Peripherality of breakup reactions

The sensitivity of elastic breakup to the interior of the projectile wave function is analyzed. Breakup calculations of loosely bound nuclei (8B and 11Be) are performed with two different descriptions of the projectile. The descriptions differ strongly in the interior of the wave function, but exhibit identical asymptotic properties, namely the same asymptotic normalization coefficient, and phase shifts. Breakup calculations are performed at intermediate energies (40-70 MeV/nucleon) on lead and carbon targets as well as at low energy (26 MeV) on a nickel target. No dependence on the projectile description is observed. This result confirms that breakup reactions are peripheral in the sense that they probe only the external part of the wave function. These measurements are thus not directly sensitive to the total normalization of the wave function, i.e. spectroscopic factor.

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arXiv2007

Are spectroscopic factors from transfer reactions consistent with asymptotic normalisation coefficients?

It is extremely important to devise a reliable method to extract spectroscopic factors from transfer cross sections. We analyse the standard DWBA procedure and combine it with the asymptotic normalisation coefficient, extracted from an independent data set. We find that the single particle parameters used in the past generate inconsistent asymptotic normalization coefficients. In order to obtain a consistent spectroscopic factor, non-standard parameters for the single particle overlap functions can be used but, as a consequence, often reduced spectroscopic strengths emerge. Different choices of optical potentials and higher order effects in the reaction model are also studied. Our test cases consist of: $^{14}$C(d,p)$^{15}$C(g.s.) at $E_d^{lab}=14$ MeV, $^{16}$O(d,p)$^{17}$O(g.s.) at $E_d^{lab}=15$ MeV and $^{40}$Ca(d,p)$^{41}$Ca(g.s.) at $E_d^{lab}=11$ MeV. We underline the importance of performing experiments specifically designed to extract ANCs for these systems.

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arXiv2006

Effects of deformation in the three-body structure of 11Li

11Li is studied within a three-body model 9Li+n+n where the core is allowed to be deformed and/or excite. In particular, we include reorientation couplings and couplings between the two bound states of 9Li. Contrary to the other examples studied within this model, we find that core excitation does not affect the structure of 11Li significantly. Reorientation couplings of the deformed 9Li can change the ground state of 11Li from a predominantly two neutron s1/2^2 configuration into a p1/2^2. In addition, we see no evidence for the existence of significant d-wave strength in its ground state, as opposed to the prediction by shell model. A comparison with shell model is presented.

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arXiv2006

XCDCC: Core Excitation in the Breakup of Exotic Nuclei

The eXtended Continuum Discretized Coupled Channel (XCDCC) method is developed to treat reactions where core degrees of freedom play a role. The projectile is treated as a multi-configuration coupled channels system generated from a valence particle coupled to a deformed core which is allowed to excite. The coupled channels initial state breaks up into a coupled channels continuum which is discretized into bins, similarly to the original CDCC method. Core collective degrees of freedom are also included in the interaction of the core and the target, so that dynamical effects can occur during the reaction. We present results for the breakup of $^{17}$C=$^{16}$C+n and $^{11}$Be=$^{10}$Be+n on $^{9}$Be. Results show that the total cross section increases with core deformation. More importantly, the relative percentage of the various components of the initial state are modified during the reaction process through dynamical effects. This implies that comparing spectroscopic factors from structure calculations with experimental cross sections requires more detailed reaction models that go beyond the single particle model.

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arXiv2006

Core Transitions in the Breakup of Exotic Nuclei

An interesting physical process has been unveiled: dynamical core excitation during a breakup reaction of loosely bound $core+N$ systems. These reactions are typically used to extract spectroscopic information and/or astrophysical information. A new method, the eXtended Continuum Discretized Coupled Channel (XCDCC) method, was developed to incorporate, in a consistent way and to all orders, core excitation in the bound and scattering states of the projectile, as well as dynamical excitation of the core as it interacts with the target. The model predicts cross sections to specific states of the core. It is applied to the breakup of $^{11}$Be on $^9$Be at 60 MeV/u, and the calculated cross sections are in improved agreement with the data. The distribution of the cross section amongst the various core states is shown to depend on the reaction model used, and not simply on the ground state spectroscopic factors.

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arXiv2006

Influence of the projectile description on breakup calculations

Calculations of the breakup of 8B and 11Be are performed with the aim of analyzing their sensitivity to the projectile description. Several potentials adjusted on the same experimental data are used for each projectile. The results vary significantly with the potential choice, and this sensitivity differs from one projectile to the other. In the 8B case, the breakup cross section is approximately scaled by the asymptotic normalization coefficient of the initial bound state (ANC). For $^{11}$Be, the overall normalization of the breakup cross section is no longer solely determined by the ANC. The partial waves describing the continuum are found to play a significant role in this variation, as the sensitivity of the phase shifts to the projectile description changes with the physical constraints imposed to the potential.

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arXiv2006

Transfer to the continuum and Breakup reactions

Reaction theory is an essential ingredient when performing studies of nuclei far from stability. One approach for the calculation of breakup reactions of exotic nuclei into two fragments is to consider inelastic excitations into the single particle continuum of the projectile. Alternatively one can also consider the transfer to the continuum of a system composed of the light fragment and the target. In this work we make a comparative study of the two approaches, underline the different inputs, and identify the advantages and disadvantages of each approach. Our test cases consist of the breakup of $^{11}$Be on a proton target at intermediate energies, and the breakup of $^8$B on $^{58}$Ni at energies around the Coulomb barrier. We find that, in practice the results obtained in both schemes are in semiquantitative agreement. We suggest a simple condition that can select between the two approaches.

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arXiv2005

Do halos exist on the dripline of deformed nuclei?

A study of the effect of deformation and pairing on the development of halo nuclei is presented. Exploratory three-body $core+n+n$ calculations show that both the NN interaction and the deformation/excitation of the core hinder the formation of the halo. Preliminary self-consistent mean-field calculations are used to search for regions in the nuclear chart where halos could potentially develop. These are also briefly discussed.

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arXiv2005

Indirect techniques in nuclear astrophysics. Asymptotic Normalization Coefficient and Trojan Horse

Owing to the presence of the Coulomb barrier at astrophysically relevant kinetic energies it is very difficult, or sometimes impossible, to measure astrophysical reaction rates in the laboratory. That is why different indirect techniques are being used along with direct measurements. Here we address two important indirect techniques, the asymptotic normalization coefficient (ANC) and the Trojan Horse (TH) methods. We discuss the application of the ANC technique for calculation of the astrophysical processes in the presence of subthreshold bound states, in particular, two different mechanisms are discussed: direct capture to the subthreshold state and capture to the low-lying bound states through the subthreshold state, which plays the role of the subthreshold resonance. The ANC technique can also be used to determine the interference sign of the resonant and nonresonant (direct) terms of the reaction amplitude. The TH method is unique indirect technique allowing one to measure astrophysical rearrangement reactions down to astrophysically relevant energies. We explain why there is no Coulomb barrier in the sub-process amplitudes extracted from the TH reaction. The expressions for the TH amplitude for direct and resonant cases are presented.

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arXiv2005

Understanding low energy reaction with exotic nuclei

Recent developments on the understanding of low energy reactions are highlighted. Emphasis is given to the CDCC framework where the breakup channels of the projectile are included explicitly. Properties of the breakup couplings are presented. Comments are given with regard to the separation between the nuclear and the Coulomb contributions to breakup cross sections as well as the dependence on the optical potentials. A discussion on the sensitivity of the CDCC basis is discussed, by comparing pure breakup results with transfer to the continuum calculations. Finally, some remaining controversies show the need to go beyond the single particle picture for the projectile.

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arXiv2005

Combined method to extract spectroscopic information

Spectroscopic factors (SF) play an important role in nuclear physics and astrophysics. The traditional method of extracting SF from direct transfer reactions suffers from serious ambiguities. We discuss a modified method which is based on including the asymptotic normalization coefficient (ANC) of the overlap functions into the transfer analysis. In the modified method the contribution of the external part of the reaction amplitude, typically dominant, is fixed and the SF is determined from fitting the internal part. We illustrate the modified method with $(d,p)$ reactions on ${}^{208}{\rm Pb}, {}^{12}{\rm C}$, and ${}^{84}{\rm Se}$ targets at different energies. The modified method allows one to extract the SF, which do not depend on the shape of the single-particle nucleon-target interaction, and has the potential of improving the reliability and accuracy of the structure information. This is specially important for nuclei on dripline, where not much is known.

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arXiv2005

Progress on reactions with exotic nuclei

Modelling breakup reactions with exotic nuclei represents a challenge in several ways. The CDCC method (continuum discretized coupled channel) has been very successful in its various applications. Here, we briefly mention a few developments that have contributed to the progress in this field as well as some pertinent problems that remain to be answered.

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arXiv2005

Coupling and higher-order effects in the 12C(d,p)13C and 13C(p,d)12C reactions

Coupled channels calculations are performed for the 12C(d,p)13C and 13C(p,d)12C reactions between 7 and 60 MeV to study the effect of inelastic couplings in transfer reactions. The effect of treating transfer beyond Born approximation is also addressed. The coupling to the 12C 2+ state is found to change the peak cross-section by up to 15 %. Effects beyond Born approximation lead to a significant renormalization of the cross-sections, between 5 and 10 % for deuteron energies above 10 MeV, and larger than 10 % for lower energies. We also performed calculations including the remnant term in the transfer operator, which has a small impact on the 12C(d,p)13C(g.s.) and 13C(p,d)12C(g.s.) reactions. Above 30 MeV deuteron energy, the effect of the remnant term is larger than 10 % for the 12C(d,p)13C(3.09 MeV) reaction and is found to increase with decreasing neutron separation energy for the 3.09 MeV state of 13C. This is of importance for transfer reactions with weakly bound nuclei.

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arXiv2005

Valence pairing, core deformation and the development of two-neutron halos

We explore the evolution of the structure of the ground state of a nucleus with two valence nucleons as the system approaches the two particle threshold. We use a three-body model of $core+n+n$ where the core is deformed and allowed to excite. We find that both NN correlations and correlations due to deformation/excitation of the core inhibit the formation of halos. Our results suggest that it is unlikely to find halo nuclei on the dripline of deformed nuclei.

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