Projectile-mass dependence of the linear momentum transfer in central collisions

Target residues from the interaction of copper with 40MeV/nucleon Ar-40 ion s have been studied using thick-target, thick-catcher recoil techniques. Cr oss sections and average forward ranges were measured for 42 products. The data were used to obtain the mass yield distribution, the linear momentum t ransfer, and the excitation energy of composite systems. Comparison to simi lar studies for the interaction of copper with C-12 ions at the same projec tile energy per nucleon shows that the linear momentum transfer in central collisions depends strongly on the projectile mass.