Deuterons from High-Energy Proton Bombardment of Matter

The results of a process of formation of high-energy deuterons from targets exposed to 25-30 BeV proton beams are evaluated. The formation mechanism involves the pairing of a neutron and proton from the cascade of nucleons which develops within the struck nucleus. The interactions responsible for the deuteron formation are firstly the average nuclear interaction seen by the cascade nucleons within the nucleus, and secondly the normal neutron-proton interaction. A magnitude of 25 MeV for the modulus of the real and imaginary nuclear potentials is sufficient to ensure good agreement with experiment for all energies of the outgoing deuterons and for all emerging angles.