Mass Yield Distributions in the Reaction ofXe136Ions withU238

Yields of 131 nuclides were measured radiochemically to delineate the mass distribution in the reaction of 1150-MeV ${}_{}{}^{136}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Xe}$ with a thick ${}_{}{}^{238}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{U}$ target. Six components attributed to either the quasifission or the quasielastic-transfer mechanisms were observed in the mass distribution. An upper limit of 20 mb is given for the fusion-fission process. Neutron-deficient product masses in the region $180<~A<~210$, colloquially referred to as the "gold finger," are explained as heavy quasifission products.