Studying ¹¹B proton structure via the ¹⁰Be(p,n)¹⁰B reaction.

The production mechanisms for boron, as well as for beryllium and lithium, are hypothesized

to lay outside well established nucleosynthesis processes. Boron is thought to have been formed

via Core Collapse Supernovae as well as via cosmic ray nucleosynthesis. Furthermore, there is

a possibility that vestiges of boron were produced during the Big Bang. It is an element whose

astrophysical origins facilitate a glimpse into some of the most extreme astrophysical processes

in the Universe. Boron’s stable isotopes, ¹⁰B and ¹¹B, have therefore been studied for some

time. The single proton structure of the ¹¹B isotope, however, is understudied. Understanding

this proton structure would provide useful insight, not only into nucleosynthesis, but into the

overarching knowledge of the isotope’s structure and neutron detection techniques as well. For

the purpose of studying this structure, the ¹⁰Be(p,n)¹⁰B reaction was measured at the Edwards

Accelerator Laboratory using the time of flight method, where a proton beam was incident on

a 90-μg/cm² BeO target. A 0° excitation function was measured in the 2.0 ≤ Ep ≤ 7.0 MeV

energy range, and resonances were observed at Ep = 2.5, 3.5, and 5.7 MeV. Lastly, angular

distributions up to 150° were measured at 2.5 and 5.7 MeV.