Application of the cranking method to the semimicroscopic algebraic cluster model and nuclear molecules

TL;DR

This paper investigates a specific quantum phase transition in light nuclei using the SACM, revealing a second order transition from compact nuclei to nuclear molecules, aligning with experimental data and relevant for heavy nucleus fission.

Contribution

It applies the cranking method to the SACM to analyze quantum phase transitions, providing a novel approach to understanding nuclear molecule formation.

Findings

Identifies a second order QPT at specific angular momentum values.

Shows the transition aligns with experimental observations.

Implications for nuclear fission processes.

Abstract

A particular quantum phase transition (QPT) is studied at excited energies of light nuclei within the Semimicroscopic Algebraic Cluster Model (SACM), using a combination of catastrophe theory and a direct minimization of the potential. A distinct change from a compact nucleus to a nuclear molecule is described as a second order QPT occurring at a certain value of angular momentum. This finding is in accordance with experimental observations when nuclear molecules appear. The method has implication in the fission of heavy nuclei.