HIGH-ENERGY SINGLE-PARTICLE STATES IN THE CONTINUUM

This paper contains new developments of the Bonaccorso-Brink reaction model for neutron transfer to continuum states in heavy-ion collisions. The spectral distributions, escape, and spreading widths of the neutron final continuum states are calculated and studied by introducing a semiclassical S matrix describing the rescattering of the neutron on the target. By comparing to previous calculations done with an optical model S matrix we suggest a method to estimate the damping of single particle states in the continuum. Our calculations for the transfer cross sections and for the single particle widths are compared to available experimental data. The results of the comparison support the interpretation of the structures in the experimental spectra up to an excitation energy as high as Ex∼20 MeV in Pb208 and Ex∼30 MeV in Zr91 as due to the population of single particle states of high spin. © 1995 The American Physical Society.