Yields of neutron-rich nuclei by actinide photofission in the giant dipole resonance region

The photonuclear reactions of actinides induced by bremsstrahlung gamma(s) are studied in the region of nuclear excitation energies that covers the entire giant dipole resonance region. A comparative analysis of the behavior of the symmetric and asymmetric modes of photon-induced fission as a function of the average excitation energy of the fissioning nucleus is performed. The mass distributions for photofission fragments are obtained. The integrated yield as well as charge distribution of photofission products is determined. Thus, the production cross sections of neutron-rich nuclei are calculated and their exoticity (neutron richness) is explored in comparison to the nuclei produced by rapid neutron capture process in nucleosynthesis.