Study of the 17O(n,α)14C reaction: Extension of the Trojan Horse Method to neutron induced reactions

The experimental study of the 17O(n,α)14C reaction has been performed in the energy range 0-350 keV. This reaction could play an important role in explaining heavy elements (s-process) nucleosynthesis in various astrophysical scenario. To overcome the practical problems arising from the neutrons production, a new application of the Trojan Horse Method has been recently suggested. In more details, the 17O(n,α)14C reaction has been studied using the quasi-free 2H(17O,α14C)1H reaction, induced at an energy of 43.5 MeV. The measurement allows one to investigate the l=3, 75 keV resonance (E*=8.125 MeV, Jπ=5−), absent in the available direct measurements because of centrifugal suppression effects.