Probing the liquid-gas coexistence in p+Xe reactions from 200 to 1400 MeV

The nuclear equation of state (EOS) is probed from statistical parameters, determined in an excitation function experiment on p+Xenat reactions at 200-1400 MeV. Total charge (Z) distributions follow a cascade-[multi]fragmentation-evaporation (CFEM) model well. The caloric curve in regions supposedly dominated by fast processes is compatible with a pure statistical multifragmentation (SMM) process, where the temperature (T)-excitation energy (ϵ*) relation starts in the Fermi liquid phase and progresses into a liquid/gas coexistence region, where it remains up to 1400 MeV. A local peak in T at ϵ*=2.1MeV agrees with the idea of sudden fragmentation.