Evidence for the general dominance of proton shells in low-energy fission
A regular pattern, revealing the leading role of the light-fragment nuclear charge, is found to emerge from a consistent analysis of the experimental information collected recently on low-energy asymmetric fission of neutron-deficient nuclei around lead. The observation is corroborated by a theoreti...
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Published in | Physics letters. B Vol. 825; p. 136859 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Elsevier B.V
10.02.2022
Elsevier |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | A regular pattern, revealing the leading role of the light-fragment nuclear charge, is found to emerge from a consistent analysis of the experimental information collected recently on low-energy asymmetric fission of neutron-deficient nuclei around lead. The observation is corroborated by a theoretical investigation within a microscopic framework, suggesting the importance of proton configurations driven by quadrupole-octupole correlations. This is in contrast to the earlier theoretical interpretations in terms of dominant neutron shells. The survey of a wider area of the nuclear chart by a semi-empirical approach points to the lack of understanding of the competition between the different underlying macroscopic and microscopic forces in a quantitative manner. Combined with previously identified stabilizing forces, the present finding shows a striking connection between the “old” (actinide) and “new” (pre-actinide) islands of asymmetric fission which could steer the strive for a unified theory of fission. |
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ISSN: | 0370-2693 1873-2445 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.physletb.2021.136859 |