Dineutron correlations in knockout reactions with Borromean halo nuclei

Abstract

We study dineutron correlations in proton-target knockout reactions induced by Borromean two-neutron halo nuclei. Using a core + n + n three-body model for the projectile and a quasifree sudden reaction framework, we focus on the correlation angle as a function of the intrinsic neutron momentum. Our results indicate that the correlations are strong in a range of neutron momenta associated to the nuclear surface. We also discuss on the role of core excitations for such correlations.