Analysis of corrections to the eikonal approximation

TL;DR

This paper investigates corrections to the eikonal approximation in nuclear collisions, finding that a semiclassical correction improves accuracy at low energies, enabling better analysis of experimental data at 10 MeV/nucleon.

Contribution

The study introduces a semiclassical correction method that extends the validity of the eikonal approximation to lower beam energies in nuclear collision models.

Findings

Wallace's correction has limited impact on elastic-scattering cross sections.

A semiclassical approximation with complex impact parameter improves the eikonal approximation.

The method allows analysis of data at energies as low as 10 MeV/nucleon.

Abstract

Various corrections to the eikonal approximations are studied for two- and three-body nuclear collisions with the goal to extend the range of validity of this approximation to beam energies of 10 MeV/nucleon. Wallace's correction does not improve much the elastic-scattering cross sections obtained at the usual eikonal approximation. On the contrary, a semiclassical approximation that substitutes the impact parameter by a complex distance of closest approach computed with the projectile-target optical potential efficiently corrects the eikonal approximation. This opens the possibility to analyze data measured down to 10 MeV/nucleon within eikonal-like reaction models.