HEAVY-ION REACTIONS BELOW THE COULOMB BARRIER

Heavy ion reactions in the sub-barrier region are of interest for the importance of C-12 + C-12, C-12 + O-16 and O-16 + O-16 in astrophysics . Systematic studies of the light heavy ion pairs are necessary to und erstand the interaction potentials. In this article, different experim ental techniques are reviewed. Theoretical approaches such as the opti cal model, IWBC model and the inversion method are discussed. Up to th is day, no theoretical method gives satisfactory explanation to the he avy ion systems. More experimental works are still needed in order to reveal the influence of nuclear structure in the reaction mechanism.