Excitation function of (p, pn) reactions at high energy

A closed theoretical formula for the (p, pn) reaction cross section at high energies in light, medium and heavy nuclei has been derived, and a comparison of the calculated cross sections with the experimental datais made for ¹²C, ¹⁹F, ⁵⁴Fe, ⁵⁸Ni, ⁵⁹Co, ⁶⁴Zn, ⁶⁵Cu, ¹⁰⁰Mo, ¹²⁷I, ¹⁴²Ce, ¹⁸²Ta and ²³⁸U at incident energies above 50 MeV. Good agreement between experimental and calculated cross sections is obtained in the entire energy range considered. In deducing the formula a direct reaction with a pure knock-out mechanism has been assumed.