Intrinsic spin distributions in multinucleon transfer reactions

Abstract: Time-dependent covariant density functional theory (TD-CDFT) combined with angular momentum projection is developed and applied to study multinucleon transfer (MNT) reactions, with a focus on the intrinsic angular momentum distributions of the final fragments. Using the illustrative reaction $^{40}$Ca + $^{208}$Pb across a range of impact parameters, we find that the MNT process generates broad distributions of intrinsic spins. These distributions arise from the conversion of relative orbital angular momentum into intrinsic spin due to frictional interactions between the colliding nuclei. Additionally, mutual information (entanglement Shannon entropy) is employed to analyze correlations between the intrinsic spins of the fragments.