Experimental study of the $^{17}$F+ $^{12}$C fusion reaction and its implications for fusion of proton-halo systems

TL;DR

This study measured the fusion cross section of $^{17}$F + $^{12}$C near the Coulomb barrier to investigate the influence of its proton-halo structure, finding no significant enhancement compared to stable systems.

Contribution

First experimental measurement of $^{17}$F + $^{12}$C fusion cross section using the Encore detector, comparing it with stable isotopes to assess halo effects.

Findings

No observed enhancement in fusion cross section due to halo structure.

Fusion behavior of $^{17}$F similar to stable isotopes.

Systematic comparison with $^{16}$O + $^{12}$C and $^{19}$F + $^{12}$C.

Abstract

The halo nature of the low-lying $1/2$+ first excited state of the exotic weakly-bound proton drip-line nucleus $^{17}$F has long been hypothesized. The structure of such a halo nucleus would imply special nuclear properties including, possibly, an enhancement in its fusion cross section above the barrier. The total fusion cross section of $^{17}$F + $^{12}$C near the Coulomb barrier was studied using the newly developed "Encore" active-target detector at Florida State University. Total fusion cross sections for the stable counterpart systems $^{16}$O + $^{12}$C and $^{19}$F + $^{12}$C were also measured to enable a systematic comparison. No influence of the halo nature of the $^{17}$F $1/2$+ first excited state on its fusion excitation function was observed when compared with the stable counterpart systems.