Measurements at low energies of the polarization-transfer coefficient Ky′yfor the reaction 3H(p→,n→)3He at 0°

Measurements of the transverse polarization-transfer coefficient K^y′y for the reaction ³H(p^→,^n→)³He are reported for outgoing neutron energies of 1.94, 5.21, and 5.81 MeV. This reaction is important both as a source of polarized neutrons for nuclear-physics experiments, and as a test of theoretical descriptions of the nuclear four-body system. Comparison is made to previous measurements, confirming that the ³H(p^→, n^→)³He reaction can be used as a polarized neutron source with the polarization known to an accuracy of approximately 5%. Comparison to R-matrix theory suggests that the sign of the ³F3 phase-shift parameter is incorrect. Changing the sign of this parameter dramatically improves the agreement between theory and experiment.

Duke Scholars

Author Werner Tornow Physics