The compound nucleus reaction 12C(11B, 2α) 15N

Energy spectra and differential cross sections of nitrogen products formed in the reaction 28 MeV 11B + 12C have been measured using a ΔE−E counter telescope. The energy spectra are smooth and therefore indicate that the nitrogen products were formed by a compound nucleus mechanism, via the formation and decay of the compound nucleus 23Na. The experimental results are compared with statistical model calculations and good agreement is obtained. This result provides further evidence for the importance of the compound nucleus mechanism in heavy ion reactions with light nuclei and also gives added validity to the statistical model for light compound systems.