Reaction cross sections in Si of light proton-halo candidates N-12 and Ne-17

Total reaction cross sections, sigma(R), on Si were measured near 40 A MeV for the proton-halo candidate N-12 and the two-proton-halo candidate Ne-17, and were compared with sigma(R) for other light proton-rich nuclei. The A-dependence shows enhanced sigma(R)s for N-12 and Ne-17, relative to their neighbors, but the effect is smaller than for B-8 which has been argued to have a proton halo. In general, nuclei with loosely bound last protons (S-p less than or equal to 1.5 MeV) have significantly larger sigma(R)S than their neighbors. Cross sections for charge-removal from N-12 and Ne-17 also were obtained. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.