Prompt muon-induced fission: a probe for nuclear energy dissipation

We solve the time-dependent Dirac equation for a muon which is initially bo und to a fissioning actinide nucleus. The computations are carried out on a 3-D Cartesian lattice utilizing the Basis-Spline collocation method. The m uon dynamics is sensitive to the nuclear energy dissipation between the out er fission barrier and the scission point, From a comparison with experimen tal data we find a dissipated energy of about 10 MeV and a fission time del ay due to friction of order 2 x 10(-21) s.