Near-Barrier Fusion and Barrier Distribution of 58Ni + 54Fe

Near- and sub-barrier fusion cross sections have been measured for the system 58Ni + 54Fe, and the fusion barrier distribution has been extracted. The measured cross sections cover the range from ~1 microbarn up to around 500 mb. Close analogies are found between the extracted barrier distribution and the available data on 58Ni + 60Ni, indicating the dominating influence of complex surface vibrations on the fusion of 58Ni + 54Fe. The present data on 58Ni + 54Fe are well reproduced by standard coupled-channels calculations in the measured energy range, including quadrupole and octupole phonons in both colliding nuclei.