Observation of the Isovector Giant Monopole Resonance via the ²⁸Si (¹⁰Be, ¹⁰B^∗ [1.74 MeV]) Reaction at 100 AMeV

The (¹⁰Be,¹⁰B^∗[1.74 MeV]) charge-exchange reaction at 100 AMeV is presented as a new probe for isolating the isovector (ΔT = 1) nonspin-transfer (ΔS = 0) response of nuclei, with ²⁸Si being the first nucleus studied. By using a secondary ¹⁰Be beam produced by fast fragmentation of ¹⁸O nuclei at the NSCL Coupled Cyclotron Facility, applying the dispersion-matching technique with the S800 magnetic spectrometer to determine the excitation energy in ²⁸Al, and performing high-resolution γ-ray tracking with the Gamma-Ray Energy Tracking In-beam Nuclear Array (GRETINA) to identify the 1022-keV γ ray associated with the decay from the 1.74-MeV T = 1 isobaric analog state in ¹⁰B, a ΔS = 0 excitation-energy spectrum in ²⁸Al was extracted. Monopole and dipole contributions were determined through a multipole-decomposition analysis, and the isovector giant dipole resonance and isovector giant monopole resonance (IVGMR) were identified. The results show that this probe is a powerful tool for studying the elusive IVGMR, which is of interest for performing stringent tests of modern density functional theories at high excitation energies and for constraining the bulk properties of nuclei and nuclear matter. The extracted distributions were compared with theoretical calculations based on the normal-modes formalism and the proton-neutron relativistic time-blocking approximation. Calculated cross sections based on these strengths underestimate the data by about a factor of 2, which likely indicates deficiencies in the reaction calculations based on the distorted wave Born approximation.