Abstract: We measured multinucleon transfer reactions in the Ar-40 + Pb-208 system at an energy close to the Coulomb barrier, by employing the PRISMA magnetic spectrometer. We extracted differential and total cross sections of the different transfer channels, with a careful investigation of the total kinetic energy loss distributions. Comparisons between different systems having the same Pb-208 target and with projectiles going from neutron-poor to neutron-rich nuclei, i.e., Ca-40, Ni-58, and Ar-40, as well as between the data and GRAZING calculations have been carried out. The neutron-rich (stable) Ar-40 beam allowed us to get access to the channels involving proton pickup, whose behavior in connection with the production of neutron-rich heavy partner has been outlined.

Abstract: To investigate the systematics of mixed-symmetry states in N = 52 isotones, a relativistic Coulomb excitation experiment was performed during the PreSPEC campaign at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum fur Schwerionenforschung to determine E2 transition strengths to 2(+) states of the radioactive nucleus Kr-88. Absolute transition rates could be measured towards the first and third 2+ states. For the latter a mixed-symmetry character is suggested on the basis of the indication for a strong M1 transition to the fully symmetric 2(1)(+) state, extending the knowledge of the N = 52 isotones below Z = 40. A comparison with the proton-neutron interacting boson model and shell-model predictions is made and supports the assignment.

Abstract: We study the strange vector meson (K*, (K) over bar*) dynamics in relativistic heavy-ion collisions based on the microscopic parton-hadron-string dynamics (PHSD) transport approach which incorporates partonic and hadronic degrees of freedom, a phase transition from hadronic to partonic matter-quark-gluon-plasma (QGP)-and a dynamical hadronization of quarks and antiquarks as well as final hadronic interactions. We investigate the role of in-medium effects on the K*, (K) over bar* meson dynamics by employing Breit-Wigner spectral functions for the K* with self-energies obtained from a self-consistent coupled-channelG-matrix approach. Furthermore, we confront the PHSD calculations with experimental data for p + p, Cu + Cu, and Au + Au collisions at energies up to root s(NN) = 200 GeV. Our analysis shows that, at relativistic energies, most of the final K* (observed experimentally) are produced during the late hadronic phase, dominantly by the K + pi -> K* channel, such that the fraction of the K* from the QGP is small and can hardly be reconstructed from the final observables. The influence of the in-medium effects on the K* dynamics at energies typical of the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider is rather modest due to their dominant production at low baryon densities (but high meson densities); however, it increases with decreasing beam energy. Moreover, we find that the additional cut on the invariant-mass region of the K* further influences the shape and the height of the final spectra. This imposes severe constraints on the interpretation of the experimental results.

Abstract: The phi-meson properties in cold nuclear matter are investigated by implementing resonant phi N interactions as described in effective approaches including the unitarization of scattering amplitudes. Several N*-like states are dynamically generated in these models around 2 GeV, in the vicinity of the phi N threshold. We find that both these states and the non-resonant part of the amplitude contribute sizably to the phi collisional self-energy at finite nuclear density. These contributions are of a similar strength as the widely studied medium effects from the KK cloud. Depending on model details (position of the resonances and strength of the coupling to phi N) we report a phi broadening up to about 40-50 MeV, to be added to the phi -> KK in-medium decay width, and an attractive optical potential at threshold up to about 35 MeV at normal matter density. The phi spectral function develops a double peak structure as a consequence of the mixing of resonance-hole modes with the phi quasiparticle peak. The former results point in the direction of making up for missing absorption as reported in phi nuclear production experiments.

Abstract: Lifetimes of the 4(1)(+) states in Fe-62,Fe-64 and the 11/2(1)(-) states in Co-61,Co-63 and Mn-59 were measured at the Grand Accelerateur National d'Ions Lourds (GANIL) facility by using the Advanced Gamma Tracking Array (AGATA) and the large-acceptance variable mode spectrometer (VAMOS++). The states were populated through multinucleon transfer reactions with a U-238 beam impinging on a Ni-64 target, and lifetimes in the picosecond range were measured by using the recoil distance Doppler shift method. The data show an increase of collectivity in the iron isotopes approaching N = 40. The reduction of the subshell gap between the nu 2p(1/2) and nu 1g(9/2) orbitals leads to an increased population of the quasi-SU(3) pair (nu 1g(9/2), nu 2d(5/2)), which causes an increase in quadrupole collectivity. This is not observed for the cobalt isotopes withN < 40 for which the neutron subshell gap is larger due to the repulsive monopole component of the tensor nucleon-nucleon interaction. The extracted experimental B(E2) values are compared with large-scale shell-model calculations and with beyond-mean-field calculations with the Gogny D1S interaction. A good agreement between calculations and experimental values is found, and the results demonstrate in particular the spectroscopic quality of the Lenzi, Nowacki, Poves, and Sieja (LNPS) shell-model interaction.