Characterization of Hot Compound Nuclei from Binary Decay into Complex Fragments

Abstract
The emission of complex particles at intermediate energies has been characterized through the reverse-kinematics reactions 25- and 30-MeV/u Nb93 + Be9, Al27. Complex particles observed in binary decays from very hot incomplete-fusion intermediates are shown to originate from compound-nucleus decay, by means of kinetic energies, angular distributions, and absolute yields. The process of complex-particle emission provides a method, applicable throughout the Periodic Table, for studying compound nuclei with temperatures and excitation energies near the expected limit of their existence.