A study of the (n, α) reaction on O¹⁶ at 14 MeV

Abstract

The O¹⁶(n, α)C¹³ reaction leading to about 4 MeV excitation of C¹³ has been studied by bombarding a thin Mylar film and using a nuclear emulsion plate as detector. The angular distribution of the emitted alpha particles is found to be asymmetric about 90° c.m. and is peaked in the backward direction indicating the presence of an exchange effect like heavy-particle stripping. Theoretical fits to the angular distribution have been attempted in terms of heavy-particle stripping process.