9413067 Peterson Description: This project supports a U.S. scientist to travel to Pakistan and collaborate with scientists there on Pion-induced breakup detection using track detectors. Fragments of nuclei after reactions with energetic pi mesons will be measured with a reliable and efficient detector system that requires a very time- consuming and careful analysis. The exposure to the requisite pion beams will be carried out in an optimal manner, in coordination with skilled analysts in Pakistan. The nuclear excitation energy will be at levels where traditional nuclear fission is preempted by fast fragment production. Nuclear targets of middle mass will be selected to minimize the role of fission in its traditional sense. Scope: The project involves Dr. R.J. Peterson, from the Nuclear Physics Laboratory at the University of Colorado, in Boulder, and a Pakistani team headed by Dr. Hameed Ahmed Khan, of the Solid State Nuclear Track Detector Laboratory in PINSTECH, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The proposed work is part of a U.S.-Brazil- Pakistan collaboration in the study of pion- induced fission. Past collaboration has resulted in U.S. publication using data from Pakistan and calculations from Boulder. This grant is the first for the P.I. for the purpose of enhancing this collaboration, and it meets the criteria of the Division of International Programs. ***
