Nuclear Physics A 739 (2004) 15–29 www.elsevier.com/locate/npe Target proximity effect and dynamical projectile breakup at intermediate energies R. Moustabchir a,∗ , L. Beaulieu a,1 , L. Gingras a,1 , R. Roy a , M. Samri b , G. Boudreault a,2 , J. Gauthier a , G.P. Gélinas a , F. Grenier a , R. Ibbotson c,3 , Y. Larochelle a , E. Martin c , J. Moisan a , D. Ouerdane a,4 , D. Rowland c,5 , A. Ruangma c,5 , C. St-Pierre a , D. Thériault a , A. Vallée a , E. Winchester c , S.J. Yennello c a Laboratoire de Physique Nucléaire, Département de Physique, de Génie Physique et d’Optique, Université Laval, Québec, G1K 7P4 Canada b Laboratoire de Physique Nucléaire et Applications, Université Ibn Tofail, Kénitra, Morocco c Department of Chemistry and Cyclotron Institute, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA Received 19 December 2003; received in revised form 6 February 2004; accepted 25 March 2004 Available online 13 April 2004 Abstract Projectile binary breakup has been investigated in 58 Ni + 12 C, 24 Mg, 197 Au at 34.5 MeV/A and 58 Ni + 70 Zn at 40 MeV/A. The fragment angular distributions exhibit an anisotropic pattern showing that breakup is aligned with the direction of scattered quasi-projectile (QP). The correlation functions of the two heaviest fragments have been studied as a function of charge asymmetry. They suggest that the QP decays while still in close proximity of the target. The correlation between the charge and velocity of the two heavy fragments shows that the binary breakup of the QP might originate from an important deformation of the projectile by the target, and that the lighter of the colliding partners also contributes to the aligned emission pattern.  2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. E-mail address: rmoustab@phy.ulaval.ca (R. Moustabchir). 1 Present address: Département de radio-oncologie, Hôtel-Dieu, 1 rue Collins, Québec, G1R 4J1 Canada. 2 Present address: University of Surrey Ion Beam Centre, Guildford, GU2 7XH, UK. 3 Present address: Nortel Networks in Rochester, NY. 4 Present address: Niels Bohr Institute, Blegdamsvej 17, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark. 5 Present address: Washington U. School of Medicine, Dept. of Radiological Sciences, Campus Box 8225, 510 South Kingshighway, St. Louis, MO 63110-1016. 0375-9474/$ – see front matter  2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2004.03.149