Fusion‐Fission of 16O+197Au at Sub‐Barrier Energies

The recent discovery of heavy‐ion fusion hindrance at far sub‐barrier energies has focused much attention on both experimental and theoretical studies of this phenomenon. Most of the experimental evidence comes from medium‐heavy systems such as Ni+Ni to Zr+Zr, for which the compound system decays primarily by charged‐particle evaporation. In order to study heavier systems, it is, however, necessary to measure also the fraction of the decay that goes into fission fragments. In the present work we have, therefore, measured the fission cross section of 16O+197Au down to unprecedented far sub‐barrier energies using a large position sensitive PPAC placed at backward angles. The preliminary cross sections will be discussed and compared to earlier studies at near‐barrier energies. No conclusive evidence for sub‐barrier hindrance was found, probably because the measurements were not extended to sufficiently low energies.