New gas-filled mode of the large-acceptance spectrometer VAMOS

A new gas-filled operation mode of the large-acceptance spectrometer VAMOS at GANIL is reported. A beam rejection factor greater than 10(10) is obtained for the Ca-40+Sm-150 system at 196 MeV. The unprecedented transmission efficiency for the evaporation residues produced in this reaction is estimated to be around 80% for alpha x n channels and above 95% for x ny p channels. A detailed study of the performance of the gas-filled VAMOS and future developments are discussed. This new operation mode opens avenues to explore the potential of fusion reactions in various kinematics. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.