Eur. Phys. J. A (2009) 42: 457-460
https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/i2008-10737-8

Regular Article - Experimental Physics

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

¹ Physics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, 37831, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
² Department of Physics, Colorado School of Mines, 80401, Golden, CO, USA
³ Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of North Carolina, 37599, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
⁴ Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, 70803, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
⁵ Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee, 37996, Knoxville, TN, USA
⁶ Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rutgers University, 08903, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
⁷ Physics Department, Tennessee Technological University, 38505, Cookeville, TN, USA
⁸ Oak Ridge Associated Universities, 37830, Oak Ridge, TN, USA

^* e-mail: bardayandw@ornl.gov

Received: 25 November 2008
Revised: 20 January 2009
Accepted: 29 January 2009
Published online: 25 February 2009

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,) 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, ¹⁸Ne and ⁷Be (p, ⁸B measurements are presented.