The neutron capture reaction on ${}^{14}\mathrm{C}$ leading to the ${}^{15}\mathrm{C}$ ground state, which plays an important role in various nucleosynthesis processes, has been studied using the Coulomb breakup of ${}^{15}\mathrm{C}$ on a Pb target at 68 MeV/nucleon. The breakup cross section has been converted into the energy-dependent neutron capture cross section using the principle of detailed balance. The energy spectrum shows typical $p$-wave neutron capture characteristics, which is explained by the fact that the ground state of ${}^{15}\mathrm{C}$ possesses a strong single-particle $s$-wave component and a moderate-sized neutron halo structure. The capture cross section for the ${}^{14}\mathrm{C}(n,\gamma ){}^{15}\mathrm{C}$ reaction derived from the present experiment has been found to be consistent with the most recent data, directly measured using a ${}^{14}\mathrm{C}$ target. This result assures the validity of the Coulomb breakup method in deriving the neutron capture cross section for neutron-rich nuclei.

• Received 26 January 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.79.035805