Background: The scarce data systematics and complexity of deuteron interactions demand an updated experimental database and theoretical frame of deuteron activation cross sections. Various reactions induced by neutrons and protons following the deuteron breakup (BU) should be also taken into account. On the other hand, deuteron reaction cross sections recommended recently for high-priority elements are still based on data fit without predictive power.

Purpose: Accurate new measurements of low-energy deuteron-induced reaction cross sections for monoisotopic $\left({}^{55}\mathrm{Mn}\right)$ natural manganese target enhance the related database and provide the opportunity for a consistent account of the related reaction mechanisms.

Methods: Activation cross sections of ${}^{54,56}\mathrm{Mn}$ and ${}^{51}\mathrm{Cr}$ nuclei by deuterons on ${}^{55}\mathrm{Mn}$ were measured at energies $\le 20$ MeV by the stacked-foil technique and high-resolution $\gamma$ spectrometry at the U-120M cyclotron of NPI CAS. Then all available data for deuterons on ${}^{55}\mathrm{Mn}$ up to 50 MeV are analyzed, with particular attention to BU and direct reaction (DR) mechanisms.

Results: Newly measured activation cross sections strengthen the deuteron database at low energies with a detailed theoretical treatment of each reaction mechanism and consistent account for all available data.

Conclusions: The overall agreement between the measured data and model calculations of deuteron-induced reactions on ${}^{55}\mathrm{Mn}$, including particularly the experimental data at low energies, supports the fact that major discrepancies shown by the current evaluations are due to missing the proper account of direct interactions.

• Received 30 September 2019
• Revised 20 December 2019
• Accepted 22 January 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.101.024605