Single-Particle Theory of Fission

Abstract

The single-particle aspects of nuclear fission theories are investigated. The liquid drop model is shown to be essentially equivalent to an independent particle model with the requirement that particles occupy the lowest orbits. The consequences of relaxing this requirement are pursued and are shown to be significant. A natural framework is provided in which the mass asymmetry of fission arises naturally. A report is given of the technical aspects and the quantitative results of a detailed model calculation. Some of the indicated conclusions are formulated as phenomenological rules.