Does the Excited Cluster 14N* Exist in the 15O Nucleus?

Abstract

On the basis of the modified potential two-cluster model with forbidden state which effectively take the Pauli principle into account, calculations have been performed of the astrophysical S-factor of radiative p¹⁴N capture to the ground state of the ¹⁵O nucleus at proton energies up to 5 MeV in the center-of-mass system (c.m.s.) with allowance for wide resonances up to 3.4 MeV in the c.m.s. For an acceptable explanation of the available experimental data it is necessary to allow the existence of the ¹⁴N cluster in the excited state ¹⁴N^* at an excitation energy of 5.69 MeV and angular momentum J^π = 1^–. It is assumed that in such a case it is possible to use the wave function of the ⁴D_1/2 state with respect to the relative motion of the p¹⁴N^* clusters. It is also shown that a description of the S-factor of p¹⁴N capture in the resonance region is possible only under the assumption that all of the low-lying resonances at 260(1/2⁺), 987(3/2⁺), 1447(1/2⁺), 2187(3/2⁺), and 3211(3/2⁺) keV in the c.m.s. are ⁴D_1/2 and ⁴D_3/2 scattering waves.