A comprehensive study of fission in 24.3 MeV/nucleon U reactions induced on C, Si, Ni, Au targets

Fission is a powerful tool for studying the primary reaction mechanisms in nucleus-nucleus collisions involving at least one fissionable nucleus. This is well shown when an additional information on the violence of the collision is provided by a totally independent observable such as the neutron multiplicity. The mass asymmetry in the entrance channel and the impact parameter are shown to have a decisive influence on the fate of the collision leading to either fusion or a two-body deeply inelastic reaction, analogous to what is known at lower bombarding energies. The experimental approach allows also to single out electromagnetic fission of U after interaction with Au and to provide some characteristics of such a process. (author)