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At least 19 records

ENDF/B-VIII.1: Alpha Reaction Sublibrary

The alphas sublibrary aims to describe nuclear reactions between incident alpha particles and different nuclei. For ENDF/B-VIII.1, the LLNL ECPL evaluation for 6Li, and the JENDL-based NNL evaluations of 9 Be and 16,17 O were adopted. Also, there were minor fixes done to 4 He.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

S-matrix calculation of the triple-alpha reaction

An S-matrix formalism is developed which can be applied to reactions in which electron screening is important, including three-body reactions and reactions involving weak interactions. The various regimes of the triple-alpha reactions are systematically discussed, and a new nonresonant regime at high densities is identified. Using the S-matrix formalism, an analytic expression is obtained for the screened triple-alpha reactions which is accurate for all temperatures and densities. The results are compared with those of Cameron (1959) and Nomoto et al. (1985), and the latter's expression for the unscreened reaction rate is verified. However, it is shown that the reaction rate in the pycnonuclear regime cannot be obtained from the unscreened rate using a screening factor, and that the results of Nomoto et al. therefore cannot be used in this regime.

Fushiki, Ikko↗

Narrow lines from alpha-alpha reactions

Intensities and spectral shapes of the prompt gamma-ray lines of Li-7 at 0.431 MeV and Be-7 at 0.478 MeV and of the delayed 0.478-MeV line, all resulting from alpha-alpha reactions, are calculated using recent direct measurements of the cross sections for the alpha-alpha reactions. It is found that the intensities of these lines are comparable to that of the 4.44-MeV line of C-12, so that the investigated lines should be observable in large solar flares, provided their Doppler widths are not excessively large. An evaluation of the shapes of the prompt lines indicates that for an isotropic distribution of energetic alpha-particles, the two lines merge into a broad feature which essentially cannot be distinguished from the continuum. A situation in which the delayed 0.478-MeV line could be very narrow is considered.

Kozlovsky, B.↗

Li production in alpha-alpha reactions

The cross section for Li-7 production in alpha-alpha reactions is shown to be increased by about a factor of 2 due to the excitation levels of Li-7 and Be-7 at 478 keV and 431 keV, respectively. The cross section for Li-6 production, however, remains the same as calculated on the basis of the detailed balance principle. The lines at 478 keV and 431 keV may link Li-7 production to feasible gamma-ray observations.

Kozlovsky, B.↗

Experimental evidence of a variant neutron spectrum from the T(T,2n)alpha reaction at center-of-mass energies in the range of 16-50 keV

Full calculations of six-nucleon reactions with a three-body final state have been elusive and a long-standing issue. We present neutron spectra from the T(t,2n)alpha (TT) reaction measured in inertial confinement fusion experiments at the OMEGA laser facility at ion temperatures from 4 to 18 keV, corresponding to center-of-mass energies (Ec.m.) from 16 to 50 keV. A clear difference in the shape of the TT-neutron spectrum is observed between the two Ec.m., with the 5He ground state resonant peak at 8.6 MeV being significantly stronger at the higher than at the lower energy. The data provides the first conclusive evidence of a variant TT-neutron spectrum in this Ec.m. range. In contrast to earlier available data, this indicates a reaction mechanism that must involve resonances and/or higher angular momenta than L=0. This finding provides an important experimental constraint on theoretical efforts that explore this and complementary six-nucleon systems, such as the solar 3He(3He,2p)alpha reaction.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Determination of boron and lithium by recording the products from (n, alpha) reactions

Irradiation with thermal neutrons in the VVR-S reactor provides a nondestructive method for determining the presence of boron and lithium in solids. The charged particles produced in the reactions Li-6(n,alpha)H-3 and B-10(n,alpha)Li-7 were detected using CsI single crystal. For alpha-particle spectrometry in the boron determination, an ionization chamber (W and Sn electrodes, 99% Ar + 1% H2) was developed allowing both absolute and relative measurements. In determining boron in lithium-containing samples, both scintillation and ionization chambers are used. In determining lithium in minerals, the error was 1.5%, and the sensitivity 0.00005 wt.%. In the determination of boron in SiC with a concentration of boron approximately (3 plus or minus 2) the error given by the alpha-range uncertainty was 15%.

Lobanov, Y. M.↗

The $^3$He+$^5$He$\rightarrow $ $\alpha $+$\alpha $ reaction below the Coulomb barrier via the Trojan Horse Method

For the first time in an application to nuclear astrophysics, a process induced by the unstable 5 He = ( 4 He-n) nucleus, the 3 He+ 5 He→2α reaction, has been studied through the Trojan Horse Method (THM). For that purpose, the quasi-free (QF) contribution of the 9 Be( 3 He,αα) 4 He reaction was selected at E 3 He =4 MeV incident energy. The reaction was studied in a kinematically complete experiment following a recent publication, where for the quasi free contribution the momentum distribution between α and 5 He particle cluster in the 9 Be nucleus in the ground state have been extracted. The angular distribution of the QF 3 He+ 5 He→2α reaction was measured at θ cm = 78°–115°. The energy dependence of the differential cross section of the 3 He+ 5 He→2α virtual reaction was extracted in the energy range E cm = 0–650 keV. In conclusion, the total cross section obtained from the Trojan-horse method was normalized to absolute cross sections from a theoretical calculation in the energy range E cm =300–620 keV.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Constraining Nucleosythesis in Neutrino-Driven Winds Using the Impact of ({alpha}, xn) Reaction Rates

The lighter heavy elements of the first r-process peak, between strontium and silver, can be synthesized in the moderately neutron-rich neutrino-driven ejecta of either core-collapse supernovae or neutron star mergers via the weak r-process. This nucleosynthesis scenario exhibits uncertainties from the absence of experimental data from (alpha, xn) reactions on neutron-rich nuclei, which are currently based on statistical model estimates. We have performed a new impact study to identify the most important (alpha, xn) reactions that can affect the production of the lighter heavy elements under different astrophysical conditions using new, constrained (alpha, xn) reaction rates based on the Atomki-V2 alpha OMP. Our results show how when reducing the nuclear physics uncertainties, we can use abundance ratios to constrain the astrophysical conditions/environment. This can be achieved in the near future, when the key (alpha, xn) reaction rates will be measured experimentally in radioactive beam facilities.

Psaltis, Athanasios↗

Molecular water adsorption and reactions on (alpha)-Al2O3(0001) and (alpha)-Alumina Particles

The adsorption and reaction of water on single crystal, -Al2O3(0001) in ultrahigh vacuum, and -alumina particles in ambient conditions, was investigated using temperature programmed desorption (TPD), infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS), diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectra (DRIFTS) and other surface science techniques. For a water coverage of 1 H2O/(surface Al3+) on -Al¬2O3(0001), no evidence for the surface hydroxyls expected from dissociative adsorption was observed in the infrared spectra, while the 2 vibration of molecular water was observed. Electron-stimulated desorption of molecular water at low coverages also indicated molecular or mixed (molecular plus dissociative) adsorption. Analysis of Kr TPD spectra showed that the water films wet the alumina substrate and suggested that the films were initially growing layer-by-layer. In contrast with the single crystal results, DRIFTS of water adsorption on alumina particles indicated the presence of surface hydroxyls that persist even after annealing to high temperatures in oxygen. For water on -Al2O3(0001) at coverages less than 0.3 H2O/(surface Al3+), water desorbed over a broad temperature range extending from ~250 K to 700 K. For larger coverages, water desorption occurred at temperatures between ~160 K and 250 K, consistent with desorption of molecular water. The results, which are consistent with at most a small amount of water dissociation on the Al-terminated (0001) surface, are difficult to reconcile with calculations suggesting that the barrier to dissociation is small. However, the results are consistent with recent vibrational sum frequency experiments showing that the hydroxylation of the Al-terminated (0001) surface takes many days even at ambient pressures and temperatures.

Petrik, Nikolay G.↗

Lifetime and g-factor measurements of excited states using Coulomb excitation and alpha transfer reactions

In this contribution the challenges in the use of a setup to simultaneously measure lifetimes and g-factor values will be presented. The simultaneous use of the transient field technique and the Doppler Shift Attenuation Method, to measure magnetic moments and lifetimes respectively, allows to obtain a complete characterization of the currents of nucleons and the deformation in excited states close to the ground state. The technique is at the moment limited to Coulomb excitation and alpha-transfer reactions, what opens an interesting perspective to consider this type of experiments with radioactive beams. The use of deep-inelastic and fusion-evaporation reactions will be discussed. An example of a setup that makes use of a beam of {sup 106}Cd to study excited states of {sup 110}Sn and the beam nuclei itself will be presented.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗