Interactions of 22-MeVHe3Particles withFe56,58andNi58

Abstract

A systematic study is made of the interaction of 22-MeV ${\mathrm{He}}^3$ ions with ${\mathrm{Fe}}^{56,58}$ and ${\mathrm{Ni}}^{58}$. The central purpose of this study is to compare the interactions induced by this strongly absorbed, spin-½ particle to various theoretical interpretations which have been successfully applied to the more commonly used nuclear probes: neutrons, protons, and alpha particles. The present investigation encompasses elastic and inelastic scattering as well as the spectral distribution of emitted neutrons of energy greater than 0.5 MeV. The elastic-scattering data are analyzed both in terms of an optical model and a strong-absorption model. The inelastic-scattering data and the high-energy neutron data are compared to the predictions of distorted-wave Born-approximation calculations. Finally, the low-energy neutron data are analyzed within the frame-work of the compound-nucleus model, and nuclear temperatures are extracted.