Direct measurements of (p, γ) cross-sections at astrophysical energies using radioactive beams and the Daresbury Recoil Separator

D. W. Bardayan, ORNL Physics Division
K. A. Chipps, Colorado School of Mines
R. P. Fitzgerald, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
J. C. Blackmon, ORNL Physics Division
K. Y. Chae, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
A. E. Champagne, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
U. Greife, Colorado School of Mines
R. Hatarik, Rutgers University–New Brunswick
R. L. Kozub, Tennessee Technological University
C. Matei, Oak Ridge Associated Universities
B. H. Moazen, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
C. D. Nesaraja, ORNL Physics Division
S. D. Pain, ORNL Physics Division
W. A. Peters, Rutgers University–New Brunswick
S. T. Pittman, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
J. F. Shriner, Tennessee Technological University
M. S. Smith, ORNL Physics Division

Abstract

There are a number of astrophysical environments in which the path of nucleosynthesis proceeds through proton-rich nuclei. These nuclei have traditionally not been available as beams, and thus proton-capture reactions on these nuclei could only be studied indirectly. At the Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF), some of the first direct measurements of (p, γ) cross-sections on radioactive beams have been made. The Daresbury Recoil Separator (DRS) has been used to separate the recoils of interest from the unreacted primary beam and identify them in an isobutane-filled ionization counter. First data from 17F (p, γ18Ne and 7Be (p, γ8B measurements are presented. © Societá Italiana di Fisica / Springer-Verlag 2009.