Spectator invariance test in the study of the Trojan Horse Method ^6,7Li fusion reactions via the Trojan Horse Method

¹ INFN-LNS, Catania, Italy
² Cyclotron Institute, Texas A&M University, College Station, USA
³ Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Universitá di Catania, Italy
⁴ Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University-Commerce, Commerce, USA
⁵ Institute of Nuclear Physics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
⁶ Institute of Nuclear Physics of ASCR, Praha-Řež, Czech Rep
⁷ Beijing Radiation Center, Beijing, China
⁸ Universitá degli Studi di Enna ”Kore”, Enna, Italy

^a e-mail: rgpizzone@lns.infn.it

Abstract

Fusion reactions play a crucial role for several astrophysical scenarios. At the low energies typical of such environments direct measurements of reaction cross sections are very difficult, and even sometimes impossible. In such cases the use of indirect methods can give a substantial help. The Trojan Horse Method (THM) is based on the quasi-free break-up of a nucleus, which can be described in terms of a cluster structure. In such applications the independence of THM results with different break-up schemes, was tested using the quasi free³ He(⁶Li,αα)H and ³He(⁷Li,αα)²H reactions. Results were then compared with the direct behaviours obtained from available data as well as with the cross sections extracted from previous indirect investigations of the same binary reactions using a different nuclide as a Trojan Horse nucleus.