Evidence for the Strong Dominance of Proton-Neutron Correlations in Nuclei

Abstract

We analyze recent data from high-momentum-transfer $(p,pp)$ and $(p,ppn)$ reactions on Carbon. For this analysis, the two-nucleon short-range correlation (NN-SRC) model for backward nucleon emission is extended to include the motion of the NN-pair in the mean field. The model is found to describe major characteristics of the data. Our analysis demonstrates that the removal of a proton from the nucleus with initial momentum 275-550 MeV/c is $92_{-18}^{+8}$ of the time accompanied by the emission of a correlated neutron that carries momentum roughly equal and opposite to the initial proton momentum. Within the NN-SRC dominance assumption the data indicate that the probabilities of $pp$ or $nn$ SRCs in the nucleus are at least a factor of six smaller than that of $pn$ SRCs. Our result is the first estimate of the isospin structure of NN-SRCs in nuclei, and may have important implication for modeling the equation of state of asymmetric nuclear matter.

4 pages and 3 figures, Revised version to be published in Phys. Rev. Lett

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