Comparison of electromagnetic and nuclear dissociation of Ne 17

The Borromean drip-line nucleus Ne-17 has been suggested to possess a two-proton halo structure in its ground state. In the astrophysical rp-process, where the two-proton capture reaction O-15(2p,gamma) Ne-17 plays an important role, the calculated reaction rate differs by several orders of magnitude between different theoretical approaches. To add to the understanding of the Ne-17 structure we have studied nuclear and electromagnetic dissociation. A 500 MeV/u Ne-17 beam was directed toward lead, carbon, and polyethylene targets. Oxygen isotopes in the final state were measured in coincidence with one or two protons. Different reaction branches in the dissociation of Ne-17 were disentangled. The relative populations of s and d states in F-16 were determined for light and heavy targets. The differential cross section for electromagnetic dissociation (EMD) shows a continuous internal energy spectrum in the three-body system O-15 + 2p. The Ne-17 EMD data were compared to current theoretical models. None of them, however, yields satisfactory agreement with the experimental data presented here. These new data may facilitate future development of adequate models for description of the fragmentation process.