MULTIFRAGMENTATION AND FRAGMENT FLOW

Abstract

Multifragmentation is studied for the system 197Au (200 A MeV)+197Au in the Quantum Molecular Dynamics approach. We find that the fragment mass distribution exhibits a power law behaviour with an exponent τ=−2.3. Time and impact parameter dependence of the fragment formation and their implications for the conjectured liquid-vapour phase-transition are investigated. We show that different fragment mass intervals populate different rapidity regions. The transverse momentum flow per nucleon increases with fragment mass in agreement with recent data, and exhibits for A≥4, a strongly enhanced sensitivity to the nuclear equation of state. In-medium effects reduce the fragment flow. The data indicate a stiff equation of state.