0000000000292877
AUTHOR
T. Kieck
Production, isolation and characterization of radiochemically pure 163Ho samples for the ECHo-project
Abstract Several experiments on the study of the electron neutrino mass are based on high-statistics measurements of the energy spectrum following electron capture of the radionuclide 163Ho. They rely on the availability of large, radiochemically pure samples of 163Ho. Here, we describe the production, separation, characterization, and sample production within the Electron Capture in Holmium-163 (ECHo) project. 163Ho has been produced by thermal neutron activation of enriched, prepurified 162Er targets in the high flux reactor of the Institut Laue-Langevin, Grenoble, France, in irradiations lasting up to 54 days. Irradiated targets were chemically processed by means of extraction chromatogr…
Detection of the Lowest-Lying Odd-Parity Atomic Levels in Actinium
Two lowest-energy odd-parity atomic levels of actinium, 7s27pP21/2o, 7s27pP23/2o, were observed via two-step resonant laser-ionization spectroscopy and their respective energies were measured to be 7477.36(4) and 12 276.59(2) cm-1. The lifetimes of these states were determined as 668(11) and 255(7) ns, respectively. In addition, we observed the effect of the hyperfine structure on the line for the transition to P23/2o. These properties were calculated using a hybrid approach that combines configuration interaction and coupled-cluster methods, in good agreement with the experiment. The data are of relevance for understanding the complex atomic spectra of actinides and for developing efficien…
Atom beam emersion from hot cavity laser ion sources
Abstract Ion sources exploiting laser resonance ionization offer efficient and element-selective radioactive ion beam production at the leading isotope separation on-line facilities worldwide. Most commonly, laser resonance ionization takes place inside a resistively heated atomizer tube directly coupled to the production target, where the element of interest is evaporated and provided as atomic vapor. While naturally the majority of atoms is ionized inside this hot cavity, a fraction of the neutrals effuses towards the high voltage beam extraction system of the subsequent mass separator. We report on several systematic investigations on this phenomenon regarding its significance and implic…
Optimization of a laser ion source for $^{163}$Ho isotope separation
To measure the mass of the electron neutrino, the “Electron Capture in Holmium-163” (ECHo) collaboration aims at calorimetrically measuring the spectrum following electron capture in 163Ho. The success of the ECHo experiment depends critically on the radiochemical purity of the 163Ho sample, which is ion-implanted into the calorimeters. For this, a 30 kV high transmission magnetic mass separator equipped with a resonance ionization laser ion source is used. To meet the ECHo requirements, the ion source unit was optimized with respect to its thermal characteristics and material composition by means of the finite element method thermal-electric calculations and chemical equilibrium simulation…
Resonance laser ionization spectroscopy of tellurium
Abstract Resonance ionization schemes for tellurium are investigated with a resonance ionization laser ion source and Ti:Sapphire lasers for fundamental research applications. We present the first three-step resonance ionization spectra of atomic Te. Several autoionizing Rydberg series converging to the first excited state of Te+ are observed and assigned to 5p3 (2Do3/2) ns and nd configurations. Our results include confirmation and significant expansion of the Rydberg series previously reported as well as observation of three new series. From the series convergence limits the ionization potential of tellurium is revised to be 72,669.006(42)stat(20)sys cm−1.
Simulation and optimization of the implantation of holmium atoms into metallic magnetic microcalorimeters for neutrino mass determination experiments
Abstract Several novel experiments designed to investigate the electron neutrino mass in the sub-eV region are based on the calorimetric measurement of the 163Ho electron capture spectrum. For this the 163Ho source, with a required activity of the order of 1 to 100 Bq , needs to be enclosed in the detector, having a volume smaller than 10 − 3 mm 3 . Ion implantation is presently considered to be the most reliable method to enclose this source in the detector homogeneously distributed in a well defined volume. We have investigated the distribution of implanted holmium ions in different target materials and for different implantation energies by means of Monte Carlo simulations based on the S…
Laser resonance ionization spectroscopy on lutetium for the MEDICIS project
The MEDICIS-PROMED Innovative Training Network under the Horizon 2020 EU program aims to establish a network of early stage researchers, involving scientific exchange and active cooperation between leading European research institutions, universities, hospitals, and industry. Primary scientific goal is the purpose of providing and testing novel radioisotopes for nuclear medical imaging and radionuclide therapy. Within a closely linked project at CERN, a dedicated electromagnetic mass separator system is presently under installation for production of innovative radiopharmaceutical isotopes at the new CERN-MEDICIS laboratory, directly adjacent to the existing CERN-ISOLDE radioactive ion beam …
Rydberg and autoionizing states of tellurium studied by laser resonance ionization spectroscopy
Multistep laser-resonance-ionization spectroscopy of tellurium (Te) has been performed at TRIUMF's off-line laser ion source test stand. Six clean and regular even-parity Rydberg series $5{p}^{3}$ $({^{4}S}_{3/2}^{\ensuremath{\circ}})$ $np\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}^{3}P_{0,1,2}$, $np\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}^{5}P_{1,2}$, and $nf\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}^{3}F_{2}/^{5}F_{1,2}$ were observed. The ionization potential of Te was extracted from the measured series as $72669.114{(56)}_{\mathrm{stat}}{(45)}_{\mathrm{sys}}\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$. Excited from two different intermediate levels, seven odd-parity autoionization Rydberg series converging to the $5{s}^{2}…
Highly efficient isotope separation and ion implantation of 163Ho for the ECHo project
Abstract The effective electron neutrino mass measurement in the framework of the ECHo experiment requires radiochemically pure 163 Ho, which is ion implanted into detector absorbers. To meet the project specifications in efficiency and purity, the entire process chain of ionization, isotope separation , and implantation of 163Ho was optimized. A new two-step resonant laser ionization scheme was established at the 30 kV magnetic mass separator RISIKO. For ionization and separation, an average efficiency of 69 ( 5 ) stat(4)sys% was achieved using intra-cavity frequency doubled Ti:sapphire lasers. The implantation of undesired 166 m Ho, which is present in trace amounts in the initial 163Ho…
On the performance of wavelength meters : Part 1 : consequences for medium-to-high-resolution laser spectroscopy
Present-day laser-spectroscopy experiments increasingly rely on modern commercial devices to monitor, stabilize, and scan the wavelength of their probe laser. Recently, new techniques are capable of achieving unprecedented levels of precision on atomic and nuclear observables, pushing these devices to their performance limits. Considering the fact that these observables themselves are deduced from the frequency difference between specific atomic resonances, in the order of MHz–GHz, the uncertainty on the output of the device measuring the wavelength is often directly related to the final systematic uncertainty on the experimental results. Owing to its importance, the performance of several …
Resonance ionization of holmium for ion implantation in microcalorimeters
Abstract The determination of the electron neutrino mass by calorimetric measurement of the 163 Ho electron capture spectrum requires ultra-pure samples. Several collaborations, like ECHo or HOLMES, intend to employ microcalorimeters into which 163 Ho is implanted as an ion beam. This makes a selective and additionally very efficient ion source for holmium mandatory. For this purpose, laser resonance ionization of stable holmium 165 Ho was studied, using a three step excitation scheme driven by pulsed Ti:sapphire lasers. Five measurements with sample sizes of 10 14 and 10 15 atoms were performed for the efficiency investigation. In average, an excellent ionization efficiency of 32(5) % coul…
A White Paper on keV sterile neutrino Dark Matter
We present a comprehensive review of keV-scale sterile neutrino Dark Matter, collecting views and insights from all disciplines involved - cosmology, astrophysics, nuclear, and particle physics - in each case viewed from both theoretical and experimental/observational perspectives. After reviewing the role of active neutrinos in particle physics, astrophysics, and cosmology, we focus on sterile neutrinos in the context of the Dark Matter puzzle. Here, we first review the physics motivation for sterile neutrino Dark Matter, based on challenges and tensions in purely cold Dark Matter scenarios. We then round out the discussion by critically summarizing all known constraints on sterile neutrin…
Measurement of the laser resonance ionization efficiency for lutetium
Abstract The development of a highly efficient resonance ionization scheme for lutetium is presented. A laser ion source, based on the all-solid-state Titanium:sapphire laser system, was used at the 30 keV RISIKO off-line mass separator to characterize different possible optical excitation schemes in respect to their ionization efficiency. The developed laser resonance ionization scheme can be directly applied to the use at radioactive ion beam facilities, e. g. at the CERN-MEDICIS facility, for large-scale production of medical radioisotopes.