Light-particle emission as a probe of reaction mechanism and nuclear excitation

The central part of this lecture is dealing with the problem of energy dissipation. A good understanding of the mechanisms for the dissipation requires to study both peripheral and central collisions or, in other works, to look at the impact parameter dependence. In order to probe the reaction mechanism and nuclear excitation, one of the most powerful tools is unquestionably the observation of light-particle emission, including neutrons and charged particles. Several examples are discussed related to peripheral collisions (the fate of transfer reactions, the excitation energy generation, the production of projectilelike fragments) as well as inner collisions for which extensive studies have demonstrated the strength of intermediate-energy heavy ions for the production of very hot nuclei and detailed study of their decay properties. (orig./HSI)