Application of the cranking method to the semimicroscopic algebraic cluster model and nuclear molecules

Abstract: A particular quantum phase transition (QPT) is studied at excited energies of light nuclei within the Semimicroscopic Algebraic Cluster Model (SACM), using a combination of catastrophe theory and a direct minimization of the potential. A distinct change from a compact nucleus to a nuclear molecule is described as a second order QPT occurring at a certain value of angular momentum. This finding is in accordance with experimental observations when nuclear molecules appear. The method has implication in the fission of heavy nuclei.