Surface boiling – an “obvious” explanation for the observed limiting temperature of finite nuclei

Abstract

Limits of stability of nuclear systems are explored within the framework of a finite-range interacting Fermi gas model and microcanonical thermodynamics in Thomas-Fermi approximation. It is found that with increasing excitation energy, infinite systems become unstable against volume boiling, while finite systems become subject to surface boiling, providing a natural explanation for the observed saturationlike patterns, or limiting temperature, in caloric curves. Boiling patterns of iso-asymmetric matter are discussed.