SOME ASPECTS OF COULOMB-EXCITATION OF NUCLEAR ROTATIONAL STATES

The Coulomb excitation of nuclear rotational states is studied with a semiclassical method using classical trajectories and the classical action in order to construct the excitation probabilities. This method allows one to consider the effect on the excitation probabilities of a weak nuclear potential. An explicit expression for the 'safe bombarding energy', that is the largest bombarding energy for which the nuclear force can be neglected, is found. Also the transfer of angular momentum to the projectile's orbit is considered. One finds that the dynamical distortion of the orbit has a measurable effect on the excitation probabilities for the case of very heavy ions. Furthermore, new dimensionless parameters measuring the dynamical distortion and the effect of the adiabaticity of the collision are introduced and discussed.