Dissipative reaction mechanisms in medium-mass nuclear collisions

Abstract Mass, energy, charge and angular distributions from fully damped reactions of the 40 Ca + 40 Ca system have been measured at 197 and 231 MeV, in both singles and coincidence. The data display features of compound nucleus fission. Comparison with similar, but asymmetric systems, however, shows an entrance-channel dependence which invalidates a fusion-fission description. A discussion in terms of fission barriers calculated using the finite-range liquid drop model suggests a fast-fission mechanism. Re-analyses of systems studied in the literature are presented in terms of the finite-range liquid drop model, indicating fast fission — a process previously assumed only to be relevant for heavier systems — to be significant in most cases. Furthermore, using the finite-range liquid drop model, we find that the systematic behaviour of the mass distributions from systems where complete fusion-fission is expected to be dominant is well described in terms of the revised locus of the Businaro-Gallone transition from symmetric to asymmetric fission.