Benchmarking ($d,p\gamma$) as surrogate reaction for ($n,\gamma$)

Neutron capture cross sections on unstable nuclei are important for many applications in nuclear structure and astrophysics. Measuring these cross sections directly is a major challenge and often impossible. In the surrogate reaction technique a desired cross section can be extracted by measuring a different (surrogate) reaction that produces the same compound nucleus. In contrast to neutron capture, a neutron transfer cross section can be measured in inverse kinematics, which allows to measurements of cross sections on short lived-species. To test the feasability of using a ($d,p\gamma$) reaction as a surrogate for ($n,\gamma$), $^{143}$Nd and $^{145}$Nd have been chosen. The goal of this benchmark experiment is to reproduce the known neutron capture cross sections ratio of these isotopes.