Pauli-principle driven correlations in four-neutron nuclear decays
P. G. Sharov+, L. V. Grigorenko+*×, A. N. Ismailova+, M. V. Zhukov°
+Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, 141980 Dubna, Russia
*National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI", 115409 Moscow, Russia
×National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute", 123182 Moscow, Russia
°Department of Physics, Chalmers University of Technology, S-41296 Göteborg, Sweden
Abstract
Mechanism of simultaneous non-sequential four-neutron (4n) emission
(or "true" 4n-decay) has been considered in phenomenological
five-body approach.
This approach is analogous to the model of the direct decay to the
continuum often
applied to 2n- and 2p-decays.
It is demonstrated that 4n-decay fragments should have specific
energy and
angular correlations reflecting strong spatial correlations of
"valence" nucleons orbiting in their 4n-precursors.
Due to the Pauli exclusion principle, the valence neutrons are pushed
to
the symmetry-allowed configurations in the 4n-precursor structure,
which causes a "Pauli focusing" effect.
Prospects of the observation of the Pauli focusing have been considered
for the
4n-precursors 7H and 28O.
Fingerprints of their nuclear structure or/and decay dynamics are
predicted.