Test of Time-Reversal Invariance in the ReactionsO16(d,α)N14andN14(α,d)O16

Abstract

An experiment to study time-reversal invariance by both absolute and relative tests of detailed balance in the reaction ${}_{}{}^{16}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{O}(d,\alpha ){}_{}{}^{14}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{N}$ and its inverse has been performed. Measurements were made at three different excitation energies in a region where compound-nuclear resonances are resolved but overlapping levels are involved. In all cases the results are consistent with the principle of detailed balance, and our lowest uncertainty was ±0.5%. By making reasonable assumptions, an upper limit of 0.2% was assigned to the time-reversal-noninvariant part of the reaction amplitudes.