The quasielastic scattering of 50-MeV $\alpha$ particles has been used as a tool to study the cluster configurations of the ${}_{}{}^6{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Li}$ nucleus by means of the ${}_{}{}^6{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Li}(\alpha ,\alpha x)Y$ reaction. Data have been obtained in kinematically complete experiments and at exact quasielastic angles for those cases corresponding to $x=p, d, t$, He, and $\alpha$. Analysis has been carried out in the framework of the plane-wave impulse approximation. Quasielastic cross sections have been measured and experimental momentum distributions extracted. Theoretical fits to these distributions using simple Gaussian and exponential functions have been calculated and used to determine both absolute and relative clustering probabilities with fair success. The more reliable relative probabilities indicate strong $p, d$, and $\alpha$ clustering in ${}_{}{}^6{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Li}$ and rather weak $t$ and ${}_{}{}^3{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{He}$ clustering.

• Received 19 August 1971

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.4.2010