Quantum propagator approach to heavy-ion fusion Original Research Article

The real-time path-integral propagator approach is used to study the fusion probability of massive nuclei including of quantum effect. An analytical expression of the probability to pass over barrier of an inverted harmonic potential is obtained, in which both height and curvature of the barrier are controlled by the neck degree of freedom. The fusion probabilities of three systems in central collision as functions of the center-of-mass energy are calculated and in agreement with the experimental results. It is shown that the quantum fluctuation enhances the fusion probability at low energies, and the neck fluctuation makes the slope of the fusion probability curve become flatter.