Study of alpha-cluster Structure in Mg-22 Using a Radioactive Ion Beam

Abstract

The alpha-clusterization of an atomic nucleus has been studied for a long time, even from the earliest days of nuclear physics. Our understanding of the -cluster structure is, however, mainly limited to the self-conjugate A = 4n (n = 2, 3, 4, ) light nuclei and some of the neutron-rich radionuclides such as Be-10, B-11, and C-14. In order to study the -cluster structure of a neutron-deficient Mg-22 nucleus, we have measured the Ne-18(, )Ne-18 scattering in inverse kinematics by using radioactive Ne-18 beams and the He-4 gas target at the Center for Nuclear Study radioactive ion beam separator of the University of Tokyo. Recoiling particles from the scattering were detected by using silicon strip detectors, which constitute E-E telescopes for particle identification. By adopting a thick target method, we were able to investigate a wide range of excitation energies E-x = 9.9 - 16.5 MeV in Mg-22 in this work.