  We present a new observable to study halo nuclei. This new observable is a
particular ratio of angular distributions for elastic breakup and scattering.
For one-neutron halo nuclei, it is shown to be independent of the reaction
mechanism and to provide significant information about the structure of the
projectile, including binding energy, partial-wave configuration, and radial
wave function of the halo. This observable offers new capabilities for the
study of nuclear structure far from stability.

Nuclear Theory;Nuclear Experiment