It might be possible that thermodynamic properties of nuclear matter, such as the caloric curve, could be obtained from heavy-ion reactions. Recent experimental and computational studies of nuclear experiments have obtained contradictory caloric curves for nuclear matter. This work improves on previous theoretical studies by considering the fragmentation produced by collisions, and introducing the methodology needed to identify the fragments, their temperature, energy, and a caloric curve. The main findings are the crucial reduction of energy produced in the promptly emitted particles, the existence of a well-defined fragmentation time, the connection of the temperature of the detected fragments with that at fragmentation time, and the possibility of obtaining the caloric curve from collisions.

• Received 13 January 2001

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.64.044605