On the Relation of Proton-Deuteron to Neutron-Deuteron Scattering

Abstract

It is shown that the scattering cross section per unit solid angle at large scattering angles, found by Tuve in his experiments on the collisions of 0.83 Mev protons with deuterons, is so much greater than the Rutherford cross section, that it cannot be solely due to scattering of $s$ protons, by the nuclear forces. It follows that the scattering observed by Tuve is resonance scattering of protons of orbital angular momenta (relative to the deuterons) greater than zero. Due to the symmetry of nuclear forces in protons and neutrons, a similar resonance scattering of 0.83 Mev neutrons incident on deuterons is to be expected. The total cross section for this neutron-deuteron resonance scattering should be between 20×${10}^{-24\mathrm{}}$ and 40×${10}^{-24\mathrm{}}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^2$.