Related papers: A stringent upper limit on the direct 3$\alpha$ de…
Recent experimental results give an upper limit less than 0.043\% (95\% C.L.) to the direct decay of the Hoyle state into 3$\alpha$ respect to the sequential decay into $^8${Be}+$\alpha$. We performed one and two-dimensional tunneling…
The decay path of the Hoyle state in $^{12}$C ($E_x=7.654\textrm{MeV}$) has been studied with the $^{14}\textrm{N}(\textrm{d},\alpha_2)^{12}\textrm{C}(7.654)$ reaction induced at $10.5\textrm{MeV}$. High resolution invariant mass…
The radiative decay of the Hoyle state is the doorway to the production of heavier elements in stellar environment. Here we report, an exclusive measurement of electric quadruple (E$_2$) transitions of the Hoyle state to the ground state of…
An excited state of $^{12}$C having excitation energy E$_x \sim$ 9.65 $\pm$ 0.02 MeV and width (FWHM) $\sim607\pm$ 55 keV, which decays to three $ \alpha $-particles via Hoyle state ($E_x \sim$ 7.65 MeV), has been directly identified for…
The second 2+ state of 12C, predicted over fifty years ago as an excitation of the Hoyle state, has been unambiguously identified using the 12C(g,a_0)8Be reaction. The alpha particles produced by the photodisintegration of 12C were detected…
Background: The structure of the Hoyle state, a highly $\alpha$-clustered state at 7.65 MeV in $^{12}\mathrm{C}$, has long been the subject of debate. Understanding if the system comprises of three weakly-interacting $\alpha$-particles in…
Using an array of high-purity Compton-suppressed germanium detectors, we performed an independent measurement of the $\beta$-decay branching ratio from $^{12}\mathrm{B}$ to the second-excited (Hoyle) state in $^{12}\mathrm{C}$. Our result…
Background: The triple-alpha process is a vital reaction in nuclear astrophysics, characterized by two consecutive reactions [$2\alpha\leftrightarrows{^{8}\rm{Be}}(\alpha,\gamma){^{12}\rm{C}}$] that drive carbon formation. The second…
The radiative branching ratio of the Hoyle state is crucial to estimate the triple-$\alpha$ reaction rate in stellar environments at medium temperatures of $T=0.1$ to 2 GK. Knowledge of the $\gamma$-decay channel is critical as this is the…
We measured the $\gamma$-decay probability of the Hoyle state with a new method of triple coincidence detection of a scattered $\alpha$ particle, a recoil $\rm ^{12}C$ nucleus, and a $\gamma$ ray in inelastic alpha scattering on $\rm…
Stellar carbon synthesis occurs exclusively via the $3\alpha$ process, in which three $\alpha$ particles fuse to form $^{12}$C in the excited Hoyle state, followed by electromagnetic decay to the ground state. The Hoyle state is above the…
In the context of the search for triples of relativistic $\alpha$-particles in the Hoyle state, the analysis of available data on the dissociation of the nuclei ${}^{12}$C, ${}^{16}$O and ${}^{22}$Ne in the nuclear emulsion was carried out.…
In order to discuss the spatial extention of the second 0+ state of 12C (Hoyle state), we analyze the inelastic form factor of electron scattering to the Hoyle state, which our 3 alpha condensate wave function reproduces very well like…
The excited states in ${^{12}{\rm C}}$ are investigated by using an extended version of the so-called Tohsaki-Horiuchi- Schuck-R\"opke (THSR) wave function, where both the $3\alpha$ condensate and ${^{8}{\rm Be}} + \alpha$ cluster…
Knowledge of the low-lying monopole strength in $\mathrm{^{12}C}$, the Hoyle state in particular, is crucial for our understanding of both the astrophysically important $3\alpha$ reaction and of $\alpha$-particle clustering. The…
A detailed knowledge of the decay properties of the so called Hoyle state in the $^{12}$C nucleus ($E_x=7.654$ MeV, $0^+$) is required to calculate the rate at which carbon is forged in typical red-giant stars. This paper reports on a new…
We use a sequential $R$-matrix model to describe the breakup of the Hoyle state into three $\alpha$ particles via the ground state of $^8\mathrm{Be}$. It is shown that even in a sequential picture, features resembling a direct breakup…
Electron scattering off the first excited 0+ state in 12C (the Hoyle state) has been performed at low momentum transfers at the S-DALINAC. The new data together with a novel model-independent analysis of the world data set covering a wide…
The first $0^+$ resonant state of the $^{12}$C nucleus ${}^{12}$C$(0_2^+)$, so called the Hoyle state, is investigated in a three-$\alpha$-particle (3-$\alpha$) model. A wave function for the photodisintegration reaction of a $^{12}$C bound…
Our present understanding of the structure of the Hoyle state in $^{12}$C and other near-threshold states in $\alpha$-conjugate nuclei is reviewed in the framework of the $\alpha$-condensate model. The $^{12}$C Hoyle state, in particular,…