Role of p-induced population of medium mass(A $\sim$ 150) neutron rich nuclei

TL;DR

This study measures excitation functions for the $^{150}$Nd(p, xpyn) reaction across a range of proton energies, providing experimental data and validating statistical models for neutron-rich medium-mass nuclei production.

Contribution

It provides new experimental excitation functions for $^{150}$Nd(p, xpyn) reactions and compares them with statistical model calculations, enhancing understanding of reaction mechanisms in neutron-rich nuclei.

Findings

Maximum (p,n) cross section of 63.7 mb at 8.6 MeV

Gradual increase of (p,2n) cross section after 9.0 MeV

Reasonable yield of (p, p'n) channel above 12.0 MeV

Abstract

Excitation functions were measured by stacked-foil activation technique for the $^{150}$Nd(p, xpyn) reaction using 97.65$%$ enriched $^{150}$Nd target. Measurement up to $\sim$50$%$ above barrier and down to 18$%$ below the barrier was performed using proton beam energy (E$_p$) of 7 - 15 MeV from VECC Cyclotron. The yield of suitable $\gamma$ rays emitted following the decay of relevant evaporation residues was determined using a 50$%$ High Purity Germanium (HPGe) detector.(p,n) cross section was found to follow the expected trend with a maximum value of 63.7(4.9)mb at E$_p$ $\sim$ 8.6 MeV. (p,2n) cross section gradually increased with E$_p$ and had maximum contribution to the total reaction cross section after E$_p$ $\sim$ 9.0 MeV. (p, p$^{\prime}$n) reaction channel also showed a reasonable yield with a threshold of E$_p$ $\sim$ 12.0 MeV. The experimental data were corroborated with statistical model calculations using different codes, viz., CASCADE, ALICE/91 and EMPIRE3.1. All the calculations using a suitable set of global parameters could reproduce the excitation function fairly well in the present energy range.