Measurement of ER cross-sections across Z = 82 shell closure

Effects of proton or neutron shell closure on nuclear dynamics have been a topic of considerable interest. Existence of super heavy nuclei, beyond the macroscopic limit, depend solely upon microscopic stabilization through shell effects. Effects of proton and neutron shell closures, especially Z = 82 and N = 126, on fission fragment angular anisotropy and survival of evaporation residue (ER) against fission have been studied. This work is aimed at investigating effects of Z = 82 shell closure in the compound nucleus (CN), if any, in enhancing ER survival against fission. We measured ER cross sections for three reactions leading to CN with same number of neutrons but different number of protons across Z = 82, viz. ¹⁹⁹₈₁Tl₁₁₈, ²⁰⁰₈₂Pb₁₁₈ and ²⁰¹₈₃Bi₁₁₈