Formation of α clusters in dilute neutron-rich matter

The surface of neutron-rich heavy nuclei, with a neutron skin created by excess neutrons, provides an important terrestrial model system to study dilute neutron-rich matter. By using quasi-free α cluster-knockout reactions, we obtained direct experimental evidence for the formation of α clusters at...

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Published in:	Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 371; no. 6526; pp. 260 - 264
Main Authors:	Tanaka, Junki, Yang, Zaihong, Typel, Stefan, Adachi, Satoshi, Bai, Shiwei, van Beek, Patrik, Beaumel, Didier, Fujikawa, Yuki, Han, Jiaxing, Heil, Sebastian, Huang, Siwei, Inoue, Azusa, Jiang, Ying, Knösel, Marco, Kobayashi, Nobuyuki, Kubota, Yuki, Liu, Wei, Lou, Jianling, Maeda, Yukie, Matsuda, Yohei, Miki, Kenjiro, Nakamura, Shoken, Ogata, Kazuyuki, Panin, Valerii, Scheit, Heiko, Schindler, Fabia, Schrock, Philipp, Symochko, Dmytro, Tamii, Atsushi, Uesaka, Tomohiro, Wagner, Vadim, Yoshida, Kazuki, Zenihiro, Juzo, Aumann, Thomas
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States The American Association for the Advancement of Science 15-01-2021
Subjects:	Alpha decay Alpha particles Alpha rays Atomic properties Bombardment Clusters Density dependence Dilution Heavy elements Heavy nuclei Isotopes Neutron stars Neutrons Nuclei Particle decay Particle physics Protons Radioactive decay Radioactivity Scientific Concepts Skin Terrestrial environments Thickness Tin Tin isotopes Uranium
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Summary:	The surface of neutron-rich heavy nuclei, with a neutron skin created by excess neutrons, provides an important terrestrial model system to study dilute neutron-rich matter. By using quasi-free α cluster-knockout reactions, we obtained direct experimental evidence for the formation of α clusters at the surface of neutron-rich tin isotopes. The observed monotonous decrease of the reaction cross sections with increasing mass number, in excellent agreement with the theoretical prediction, implies a tight interplay between α-cluster formation and the neutron skin. This result, in turn, calls for a revision of the correlation between the neutron-skin thickness and the density dependence of the symmetry energy, which is essential for understanding neutron stars. Our result also provides a natural explanation for the origin of α particles in α decay.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	0036-8075 1095-9203
DOI:	10.1126/science.abe4688