Speaker
Description
Multinucleon transfer (MNT) reactions between very heavy nuclei provide a promising pathway to access neutron-rich heavy nuclei that are difficult, or impossible, to produce through conventional fusion-evaporation reactions. In particular, collisions involving actinide nuclei may offer new opportunities to explore the region towards the heaviest elements and to investigate the interplay between nucleon transfer, dissipation and fission.
We will present our experimental programme devoted to the study of MNT reactions in very heavy systems. Results from the 136Xe+238U reaction studied at Argonne National Laboratory will be discussed, together with other systems investigated to explore the production and structure of heavy nuclei through MNT reactions. An outlook on forthcoming experiments will also be given.
These measurements aim at constraining production yields and reaction mechanisms involving the transfer of several nucleons, while providing spectroscopic information on neutron-rich heavy nuclei. The perspectives offered by MNT reactions for extending our knowledge towards still heavier and more neutron-rich systems will also be discussed.