Indirect Investigation of the D + 6Li Reaction at Low Energies Relevant for Nuclear Astrophysics

The indirect investigation of low-energy charged-particle reactions relevant for nuclear astrophysics is considered, employing statistical tensor analysis. Data from the quasi-free contribution to the <SUP>6</SUP>Li(<SUP>6</SUP>Li, 2α)<SUP>4</SUP>He reaction at projectile energies above the Coulomb barrier are analyzed in order to extract the excitation function of the <SUP>6</SUP>Li(d, α)<SUP>4</SUP>He reaction at very low relative energy. The results are compared with an astrophysical factor extracted from the free-reaction cross section data. The limits of the method are discussed.