Comparison of fission and quasi-fission modes

TL;DR

This paper investigates how quantum shell effects influence the formation of nuclear fragments in fission and quasi-fission, revealing that similar shell effects govern the final nucleon distribution in both processes.

Contribution

It provides systematic TDHF simulation evidence that shell effects similarly impact quasi-fission and fission fragment distributions, linking the two mechanisms.

Findings

Shell effects halt mass equilibration in quasi-fission at properties similar to asymmetric fission.

Quantum shell effects influence the final nucleon distribution in both fission and quasi-fission.

Simulations suggest a common shell-driven mechanism in fragment formation.

Abstract

Quantum shell effects are known to affect the formation of fragments in nuclear fission. Shell effects also affect quasi-fission reactions occurring in heavy-ion collisions. Systematic time-dependent Hartree-Fock simulations of 50Ca+176Yb collisions show that the mass equilibration between the fragments in quasi-fission is stopped when they reach similar properties to those in the asymmetric fission mode of the 226Th compound nucleus. Similar shell effects are then expected to determine the final repartition of nucleons between the nascent fragments in both mechanisms. Future experimental studies that could test these observations are discussed.