Work

Neutron Correlations and Clustering in Neutron-Rich Nuclear Systems

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: In this paper, we will briefly review the recent progress on neutron correlations and clustering in neutron-rich nuclei from quasi-free scattering experiments. The quasi-free (p, $pn$) reaction was measured for the Borromean nuclei $^{11}\mathrm{Li}$, $^{14}\mathrm{Be}$, and $^{17}\mathrm{B}$. A surprisingly small s-wave component was found for 17B, revealing a weak neutron halo in 17B, and a comparative study of the three nuclei shows the surface localization of the dineutron correlation and its universality in Borromean nuclei. The two-neutron emission of 16Be was also studied, finding a strong dineutron correlation in 16Be(g.s.) but a weak correlation in 16$2^+$). Two missing-mass measurements using $^{4}\mathrm{He}(^{8}\mathrm{He}$, $^{8}\mathrm{Be}$) and $^{8}\mathrm{He}(p$, $p\alpha$) reactions provided evidence for the $^{4}n$ resonance, but the $^{3}n$ resonance was not supported by the recent experiment employing the $t(t,^3\mathrm{He})^3n$ charge-exchange reaction. The quasi-free $(p,p \alpha )$ reaction has been extended to unstable nuclei, and the recent experiment unravels the $\alpha$–$2n$–$\alpha$ molecule-like cluster structure of 10Be(g.s.).

Source: Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physics

DOI: 10.1093/ptep/ptag037

Authors: Zaihong Yang, Yuki Kubota

Institutions: Peking University, State Key Laboratory of Nuclear Physics and Technology, RIKEN Nishina Center

Language: English

Topic: Nuclear physics research studies

Subfield: Nuclear and High Energy Physics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $979