Matter radii of light halo nuclei

We reexamine the matter radii of diffuse halo nuclei, as deduced from reaction cross section measurements at high energy. Careful consideration is given to the intrinsic few-body structure of these projectiles and the adiabatic nature of the projectile-target interaction. Using 11Li, 11Be, and 8B as examples we show that data require significantly larger matter radii than previously reported. The revised value for 11Li of 3.55fm is consistent with three-body models with significant 1s-intruder state components, which reproduce experimental 9Li momentum distributions following 11Li breakup, but were hitherto thought to be at variance with cross section data. copyright 1996 The American Physical Society