Conversion coefficients of the isomeric state in 72Br

In order to determine the Gamow‐Teller strength distribution for the N  =  Z nucleus 72Kr an experiment was performed with a Total Absorption Gamma Spectrometer. To fully accomplish this task it is crucial to determine the multipolarity of the low energy transitions as the spin‐parity of the daughter ground state has been debated. This is done by experimental determination of the conversion coefficients. Preliminary results for the multipolarity and conversion coefficients of the transition connecting the isomeric state at 101 keV with the 72Br ground state are presented.

Total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy of niobium isomers

15 pags. 17 figs., 5 tabs.

12C(p,p′) scattering measurement at forward angles

Experimental method of measuring inelastic proton scattering with high-resolution at forward angles including zero degrees has been developed. An energy resolution of 20 keV and a scattering angle resolution of 0.5 degrees have been achieved as well as low background condition and a reliable background subtraction method. The experimental technique was applied to the 12 C (p,p′) reaction for studying the property of the second 0+ state at 7.7 MeV and a broad bump around Ex~10 MeV , where the presence of a 2+ state was reported from the 12 C (α,α′) measurement. Preliminary spectra and angular distributions are shown.

First determination of β-delayed multiple neutron emission beyond A = 100 through direct neutron measurement : The P2n value of 136Sb

Background: β-delayed multiple neutron emission has been observed for some nuclei with A≤100, being the Rb100 the heaviest β2n emitter measured to date. So far, only 25P2n values have been determined for the ≈300 nuclei that may decay in this way. Accordingly, it is of interest to measure P2n values for the other possible multiple neutron emitters throughout the chart of the nuclides. It is of particular interest to make such a measurement for nuclei with A>100 to test the predictions of theoretical models and simulation tools for the decays of heavy nuclei in the region of very neutron-rich nuclei. In addition, the decay properties of these nuclei are fundamental for the understanding of a…

Experimental study of 100Tc β decay with total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy

The β decay of 100Tc has been studied by using the total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy technique at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility in Jyväskylä. In this work the new Decay Total Absorption γ -ray Spectrometer in coincidence with a cylindrical plastic β detector has been employed. The β intensity to the ground state obtained from the analysis is in good agreement with previous high-resolution measurements. However, differences in the feeding to the first-excited state as well as weak feeding to a new level at high excitation energy have been deduced from this experiment. Theoretical calculations performed in the quasiparticle random-phase approximation framework are also r…

New neutron-deficient isotopes from $^{78}$Kr fragmentation

In an experiment with the BigRIPS separator at the RIKEN Nishina Center, the fragmentation of a $^{78}$Kr beam allowed the observation of new neutron-deficient isotopes at the proton drip-line. Clean identification spectra could be produced and $^{63}$Se, $^{67}$Kr, and $^{68}$Kr were identified for the first time. In addition, $^{59}$Ge was also observed. Three of these isotopes, $^{59}$Ge, $^{63}$Se, and $^{67}$Kr, are potential candidates for ground-state two-proton radioactivity. In addition, the isotopes $^{58}$Ge, $^{62}$Se, and $^{66}$Kr were also sought but without success. The present experiment also allowed the determination of production cross sections for some of the most exotic…

Gamow-Teller strengths in proton-rich exotic nuclei deduced in the combined analysis of mirror transitions

Isospin symmetry is expected for the T-z=+/- 1 -> 0 isobaric analogous transitions in isobars with mass number A, where T-z is the z component of isospin T. Assuming this symmetry, strengths of analogous Gamow-Teller (GT) transitions within A=50 isobars were determined from a high energy-resolution T-z=+1 -> 0, Cr-50(He-3,t)Mn-50 study at 0 degrees in combination with the decay Q value and lifetime from the T-z=-1 -> 0, Fe-50 ->Mn-50 beta decay. This method can be applied to other pf-shell nuclei and can be used to study GT strengths of astrophysical interest.

Total absorption studies of high priority decays for reactor applications: 86Br and 91Rb

Preliminary results from beta decay studies of nuclei that are important for reactor applications are presented. The beta decays have been studied using the total absorption technique (TAS) and the pure beams provided by the JYFLTRAP system at the IGISOL facility of the University of Jyväskylä. peerReviewed

New accurate measurements of neutron emission probabilities for relevant fission products

We have performed new accurate measurements of the beta-delayed neutron emission probability for ten isotopes of the elements Y, Sb, Te and I. These are fission products that either have a significant contribution to the fraction of delayed neutrons in reactors or are relatively close to the path of the astrophysical r process. The measurements were performed with isotopically pure radioactive beams using a constant and high efficiency neutron counter and a low noise beta detector. Preliminary results are presented for six of the isotopes and compared with previous measurements and theoretical calculations. peerReviewed

Single particle structure of exotic nuclei with transfer reactions

International audience; We report here on the first results obtained from the study of the 24Ne(d, p)25Ne reaction performed with SPIRAL beam at GANIL using the new TIARA+V AMOS+EXOGAM setup.

Study of the β decay of fission products with the DTAS detector

Total Absorption Spectroscopy measurements of the β decay of 103Mo and 103Tc, important contributors to the decay heat summation calculation in reactors, are reported in this work. The analysis of the experiment, performed at IGISOL with the new DTAS detector, show new β intensity that was not detected in previous measurements with Ge detectors. peerReviewed

Observation of the 2+ isomer in Co52

We report the first observation of the ${2}^{+}$ isomer in $^{52}\mathrm{Co}$, produced in the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay of the ${0}^{+}$, $^{52}\mathrm{Ni}$ ground state. We have observed three $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays at 849, 1910, and 5185 keV characterizing the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ de-excitation of the isomer. We have measured a half-life of 102(6) ms for the isomeric state. The Fermi and Gamow-Teller transition strengths for the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay of $^{52m}\mathrm{Co}$ to $^{52}\mathrm{Fe}$ have been determined. We also add new information on the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay of the ${6}^{+}$, $^{52}\mathrm{Co}$ ground state, for which we have measured a half-life of 112(3) ms.

Complete Electric Dipole Response and the Neutron Skin inPb208

A benchmark experiment on Pb-208 shows that polarized proton inelastic scattering at very forward angles including 0 degrees is a powerful tool for high-resolution studies of electric dipole (E1) and spin magnetic dipole (M1) modes in nuclei over a broad excitation energy range to test up-to-date nuclear models. The extracted E1 polarizability leads to a neutron skin thickness r(skin) = 0.156(-0.021)(+0.025) fm in Pb-208 derived within a mean-field model [Phys. Rev. C 81, 051303 (2010)], thereby constraining the symmetry energy and its density dependence relevant to the description of neutron stars.

Total absorption study of the \beta decay of 102,104,105Tc

The β-feeding probabilities for three important contributors to the decay heat in nuclear reactors, namely 102,104,105Tc, have been measured using the total absorption spectroscopy technique. For the measurements, sources of very high isobaric purity have been obtained using a Penning trap (JYFLTRAP). A detailed description of the data analysis is given and the results are compared with high-resolution measurements and theoretical calculations. peerReviewed

β−-delayed spectroscopy of neutron-rich tantalum nuclei: Shape evolution in neutron-rich tungsten isotopes

The low-lying structure of W-188,W-190,W-192 has been studied following beta decays of the neutron-rich mother nuclei Ta-188,Ta-190,Ta-192 produced following the projectile fragmentation of a 1-GeV-per-nucleon Pb-208 primary beam on a natural beryllium target at the GSI Fragment Separator. The beta-decay half-lives of Ta-188, Ta-190, and Ta-192 have been measured, with gamma-ray decays of low-lying states in their respective W daughter nuclei, using heavy-ion beta-gamma correlations and a position-sensitive silicon detector setup. The data provide information on the low-lying excited states in W-188, W-190, and W-192, which highlight a change in nuclear shape at W-190 compared with that of …

Studying the Exotic Decay $^{70}Kr$ $\rightarrow$ $^{70}Br$

Acta physica Polonica / B 51(3), 587 (2020). doi:10.5506/APhysPolB.51.587

Shapes of the $^{192,190}$Pb ground states from beta decay studies using the total absorption technique

The beta decay of $^{192,190}$Pb has been studied using the total absorption technique at the ISOLDE(CERN) facility. The beta-decay strength deduced from the measurements, combined with QRPA theoretical calculations, allow us to infer that the ground states of the $^{192,190}$Pb isotopes are spherical. These results represent the first application of the shape determination method using the total absorption technique for heavy nuclei and in a region where there is considerable interest in nuclear shapes and shape effects. The β decay of Pb192,190 has been studied using the total absorption technique at the ISOLDE (CERN) facility. The β-decay strength deduced from the measurements, combined …

Characterization of a neutron–beta counting system with beta-delayed neutron emitters

A new detection system for the measurement of beta-delayed neutron emission probabilities has been characterized using fission products with well known β-delayed neutron emission properties. The setup consists of BELEN-20, a 4π neutron counter with twenty 3He proportional tubes arranged inside a large polyethylene neutron moderator, a thin Si detector for β counting and a selftriggering digital data acquisition system. The use of delayed-neutron precursors with different neutron emission windows allowed the study of the effect of energy dependency on neutron, β and β-neutron rates. The observed effect is well reproduced by Monte Carlo simulations. The impact of this dependency on the accura…

Observation of Low- and High-Energy Gamow-Teller Phonon Excitations in Nuclei

Y. Fujita et al. ; 5 pags. ; 3 figs. PACS numbers: 24.30.Cz, 25.55.Kr, 27.40.+z

Experimental study of $^{100}$Tc $\beta$ decay with total absorption $\gamma$-ray spectroscopy

International audience; The β decay of Tc100 has been studied by using the total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy technique at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility in Jyväskylä. In this work the new Decay Total Absorption γ-ray Spectrometer in coincidence with a cylindrical plastic β detector has been employed. The β intensity to the ground state obtained from the analysis is in good agreement with previous high-resolution measurements. However, differences in the feeding to the first-excited state as well as weak feeding to a new level at high excitation energy have been deduced from this experiment. Theoretical calculations performed in the quasiparticle random-phase approximatio…

First Measurement of Severalβ-Delayed Neutron Emitting Isotopes BeyondN=126

The β-delayed neutron emission probabilities of neutron rich Hg and Tl nuclei have been measured together with β-decay half-lives for 20 isotopes of Au, Hg, Tl, Pb, and Bi in the mass region N≳126. These are the heaviest species where neutron emission has been observed so far. These measurements provide key information to evaluate the performance of nuclear microscopic and phenomenological models in reproducing the high-energy part of the β-decay strength distribution. This provides important constraints on global theoretical models currently used in r-process nucleosynthesis.

Total Absorption Spectroscopy Study of $^{92}$Rb Decay: A Major Contributor to Reactor Antineutrino Spectrum Shape

The antineutrino spectra measured in recent experiments at reactors are inconsistent with calculations based on the conversion of integral beta spectra recorded at the ILL reactor. $^{92}$Rb makes the dominant contribution to the reactor spectrum in the 5-8 MeV range but its decay properties are in question. We have studied $^{92}$Rb decay with total absorption spectroscopy. Previously unobserved beta feeding was seen in the 4.5-5.5 region and the GS to GS feeding was found to be 87.5(25)%. The impact on the reactor antineutrino spectra calculated with the summation method is shown and discussed.

Pygmy dipole resonance in208Pb

Scattering of protons of several hundred MeV is a promising new spectroscopic tool for the study of electric dipole strength in nuclei. A case study of 208Pb shows that at very forward angles J^pi = 1- states are strongly populated via Coulomb excitation. A separation from nuclear excitation of other modes is achieved by a multipole decomposition analysis of the experimental cross sections based on theoretical angular distributions calculated within the quasiparticle-phonon model. The B(E1) transition strength distribution is extracted for excitation energies up to 9 MeV, i.e., in the region of the so-called pygmy dipole resonance (PDR). The Coulomb-nuclear interference shows sensitivity to…

Large Impact of the Decay of Niobium Isomers on the Reactor ¯νe Summation Calculations

Even mass neutron-rich niobium isotopes are among the principal contributors to the reactor antineutrino energy spectrum. They are also among the most challenging to measure due to the refractory nature of niobium, and because they exhibit isomeric states lying very close in energy. The β-intensity distributions of 100gs;100mNb and 102gs;102mNb β decays have been determined using the total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy technique. The measurements were performed at the upgraded Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility at the University of Jyväskylä. Here, the double Penning trap system JYFLTRAP was employed to disentangle the β decay of the isomeric states. The new data obtained in this …

Beta delayed alpha emission from the neutron deficient rare earth isotopes [sup 152]Tm and [sup 150]Ho

The study of beta‐delayed proton emission is a well known method to aid the determination of the beta strength distribution in nuclei far from the stability line. At the neutron deficient side of the nuclear chart the process of proton or alpha emission from excited states is energetically allowed when one goes far enough from stability. However, beta‐delayed alphas have seldom been measured for nuclei heavier than A  =  20. Here we present a study of the beta‐delayed alpha‐particle emission from 152Tm and 150Ho and their importance in the full B(GT) distribution. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

Total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy of the β -delayed neutron emitters I137 and Rb95

The decays of the β-delayed neutron emitters I137 and Rb95 have been studied with the total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy technique. The purity of the beams provided by the JYFLTRAP Penning trap at the ion guide isotope separator on-line facility in Jyvaskyla allowed us to carry out a campaign of isotopically pure measurements with the decay total absorption γ-ray spectrometer, a segmented detector composed of 18 NaI(Tl) modules. The contamination coming from the interaction of neutrons with the spectrometer has been carefully studied, and we have tested the use of time differences between prompt γ rays and delayed neutron interactions to eliminate this source of contamination. Due to the s…

Characterization of a new modular decay total absorption gamma-ray spectrometer (DTAS) for FAIR

Beta-decay studies are one of the main goals of the DEcay SPECtroscopy experiment (DESPEC) to be installed at the future Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR). DESPEC aims at the study of nuclear structure of exotic nuclei. A new modular Decay Total Absorption gamma-ray Spectrometer (DTAS) is being built at IFIC and is specially adapted to studies at fragmentation facilities such as the Super Fragment Separator (Super-FRS) at FAIR. The designed spectrometer is composed of 16 identical NaI(Tl) scintillation crystals. This work focuses on the characterization of these independent modules, as an initial step for the characterization of the full spectrometer. Monte Carlo simulations h…

Measurement of the heaviest Beta-delayed 2-neutron emitter: 136Sb

The Beta-delayed neutron emission probability, Pn , of very exotic nuclei is crucial for the understanding of nuclear structure properties of many isotopes and astrophysical processes such as the rapid neutron capture process (r-process). In addition Beta-delayed neutrons are important in a nuclear power reactor operated in a prompt sub-critical, delayed critical condition, as they contribute to the decay heat inducing fission reactions after a shut down. The study of neutron-rich isotopes and the measurement of Beta-delayed one-neutron emitters (Beta1n) is possible thanks to the Rare Isotope Beam (RIB) facilities, where radioactive beams allow the production of exotic nuclei of interest, w…

Characterization of a cylindrical plastic β-detector with Monte Carlo simulations of optical photons

In this work we report on the Monte Carlo study performed to understand and reproduce experimental measurements of a new plastic β-detector with cylindrical geometry. Since energy deposition simulations differ from the experimental measurements for such a geometry, we show how the simulation of production and transport of optical photons does allow one to obtain the shapes of the experimental spectra. Moreover, taking into account the computational effort associated with this kind of simulation, we develop a method to convert the simulations of energy deposited into light collected, depending only on the interaction point in the detector. This method represents a useful solution when extens…

Gamow-Teller Transitions Studied in ([sup 3]He, t) Reaction and Analogous β decay

Due to the simplicity of the στ operator that causes Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions, they are the most popular nuclear weak process in the Universe. The GT transitions in pf‐shell nuclei, for example, starting from stable Tz = +1 and proton‐rich Tz = +1 nuclei, where Tz = (N−Z)/2, play important roles in the supernova‐explosion or rp‐process nucleosynthesis. In the β‐decay study of pf‐shell nuclei, half‐lives can be measured rather accurately. On the other hand, in a high‐resolution (3He, t) charge‐exchange reaction at 0°, individual GT transitions up to high excitations can be studied. In order to derive reliable GT transition strengths B(GT), we present a unique analysis that combines the …

NUCLEAR STRUCTURE ADDRESSED AT GSI/RISING

Nuclear structure spectroscopy studies at GSI recently gained increased momentum within a broad international community with the installation of the Rare Isotopes Spectroscopic INvestigation at GSI (RISING) project. A wide range of physical phenomena has been addressed by high-resolution in-beam γ-ray spectroscopy experiments with radioactive beams. Relativistic radioactive beams are implanted and their subsequent γ and β decay is investigated. Within this "stopped beam campaign" germanium detectors were arranged in a close geometry around the passive stopper or an array of DSSSD detectors. The exceptionally high γ-ray efficiency of that configuration made it possible to identify decays of…

Total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy of the β-delayed neutron emitters 87Br, 88Br, and 94Rb

We investigate the decay of 87,88Br and 94Rb using total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy. These important fission products are β-delayed neutron emitters. Our data show considerable βγ intensity, so far unobserved in high-resolution γ -ray spectroscopy, from states at high excitation energy. We also find significant differences with the β intensity that can be deduced from existing measurements of the β spectrum. We evaluate the impact of the present data on reactor decay heat using summation calculations. Although the effect is relatively small it helps to reduce the discrepancy between calculations and integral measurements of the photon component for 235U fission at cooling times in the r…

Strong γ-ray emission from neutron unbound states populated in β-decay: Impact on (n,γ) cross-section estimates

J. L. Taín et al. -- 6 pags., 7 figs., 1 tab. -- Open Access funded by Creative Commons Atribution Licence 4.0

Total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy of the β decays of 96gs,mY

The β decays of the ground state (gs) and isomeric state (m) of 96Y have been studied with the total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy technique at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility. The separation of the 8+ isomeric state from the 0− ground state was achieved thanks to the purification capabilities of the JYFLTRAP double Penning trap system. The β-intensity distributions of both decays have been independently determined. In the analyses the deexcitation of the 1581.6 keV level in 96Zr, in which conversion electron emission competes with pair production, has been carefully considered and found to have significant impact on the β-detector efficiency, influencing the β-intensity di…

Beta decay studies with the total absorption technique: past, present and future

Measurements of beta decay reduced transition probabilities are particularly relevant in nuclei far from the stability line. It has been demonstrated that a proper measurement of this quantity requires the use of the total absorption technique, which has become a reliable tool in recent years, thanks to the increased efficiency of the associated spectrometers and the development of new analysis techniques. In this paper, we present a brief history of the past and present use of these detectors and how they might be developed in the future.

Nuclear structure “southeast” ofPb208: Isomeric states inHg208andTl209

The nuclear structure of neutron-rich N>126 nuclei has been investigated following their production via relativistic projectile fragmentation of a E/A=1 GeV U-238 beam. Metastable states in the N=128 isotones Hg-208 and Tl-209 have been identified. Delayed gamma-ray transitions are interpreted as arising from the decay of I-pi=(8(+)) and (17/2(+)) isomers, respectively. The data allow for the so far most comprehensive verification of the shell-model approach in the region determined by magic numbers Z 126.

β decay of the nuclei 60Ga (Tz=−1), 62Ga, and 70Br (Tz=0)

Determination of β-decay ground state feeding of nuclei of importance for reactor applications

In β-decay studies the determination of the decay probability to the ground state (g.s.) of the daughter nucleus often suffers from large systematic errors. The difficulty of the measurement is related to the absence of associated delayed γ-ray emission. In this work we revisit the 4πγ−β method proposed by Greenwood and collaborators in the 1990s, which has the potential to overcome some of the experimental difficulties. Our interest is driven by the need to determine accurately the β-intensity distributions of fission products that contribute significantly to the reactor decay heat and to the antineutrinos emitted by reactors. A number of such decays have large g.s. branches. The method is…

Gamow-Teller Transitions Starting from T[sub z] = +3∕2 Nucleus [sup 47]Ti

Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions are mediated by the στ operator. Owing to its simplicity and also its spin‐isospin nature, GT transitions play key roles in the studies of nuclear structure as well as astro‐nuclear processes. In violent neutrino‐induced reactions at the core‐collapse stage of type II supernovae, Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions starting from stable as well as unstable pf‐shell nuclei play important roles. We study GT transitions starting from 47Ti in a high‐resolution (3He,t) charge‐exchange reactions at 0° and at an intermediate incident energy of 140 MeV/nucleon at Research Center for Nuclear Physics (RCNP), Osaka. Individual GT transitions up to high excitations were observed.…

Complete dipole response in [sup 208]Pb from high-resolution polarized proton scattering at 0°

At the Research Center for Nuclear Physics, Osaka, Japan, the 208Pb(p,p´) reaction was measured at Ep=295 MeV and scattering angles Θlab= 0° - 10°. A high energy resolution of the order of ΔE/E ≈ 8x10^-5 was achieved, corresponding to ΔE=25-30 keV (FWHM). Cross sections were extracted by a multipole decomposition analysis of the angular distributions. Dominant contributions at very forward angles originate from E1 excitation due to Coulomb projectile-target interaction and spin M1 transitions caused by the spin-isospin part of the proton-nucleus interaction. A separation of these contributions was performed with two independent methods, viz. a multipole decomposition of the angular distribu…

Gamma/neutron competition above the neutron separation energy in delayed neutron emitters

To study the β-decay properties of some well known delayed neutron emitters an experiment was performed in 2009 at the IGISOL facility (University of Jyvaskyla in Finland) using Total Absorption -ray Spectroscopy (TAGS) technique. The aim of these measurements is to obtain the full β-strength distribution below the neutron separation energy (Sn) and the γ/neutron competition above. This information is a key parameter in nuclear technology applications as well as in nuclear astrophysics and nuclear structure. Preliminary results of the analysis show a significant γ-branching ratio above Sn. © Owned by the authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2014.

Commissioning of the BRIKEN beta-delayed neutron detector for the study of exotic neutron-rich nuclei

Beta-delayed neutron emission (Beta-n) is a form of radioactive decay in which an electron, an anti-neutrino and one or more neutrons are emitted. This process arises if the energy window of the decay Q_Beta is greater than the neutron separation energy S n of the daughter. The probability in each decay of emitting neutrons is called the Pn value. This form of decay plays a key role in the synthesis of chemical elements in the Universe via the rapid neutron capture process, or r-process. The r-process proceeds far from the valley of nuclear stability, and leads to very neutron-rich nuclei that then decay to the line of stability. Most of these nuclei are ßn emitters. The initial abundance d…

Total absorption spectroscopy of fission fragments relevant for reactor antineutrino spectra

International audience; The accurate determination of reactor antineutrino spectra remains a very active research topic for which new methods of study have emerged in recent years. Indeed, following the long-recognized reactor anomaly (measured antineutrino deficit in short baseline reactor experiments when compared with spectral predictions), the three international reactor neutrino experiments Double Chooz, Daya Bay and Reno have recently demonstrated the existence of spectral distortions in their measurements with respect to the same predictions. These spectral predictions were obtained through the conversion of integral beta-energy spectra obtained at the ILL research reactor. Several s…

β-delayedγ-ray spectroscopy of203,204Au and200−202Pt

The beta decay of five heavy, neutron-rich nuclei, Pt-203,Pt-204 and Ir200-202, has been investigated following relativistic cold fragmentation reactions of lead projectiles using the FRS + RISING setup at GSI. This paper reports on the study of the low-lying states in the decay daughter nuclei Au-203,Au-204 and Pt200-202. The characteristic gamma rays for each nucleus have been determined using beta-delayed gamma-ray spectroscopy. Tentative level schemes, relative intensities, and apparent beta feedings are provided. These data are compared with shell-model calculations, which indicate a substantial contribution to the total beta strength from high-energy first-forbidden beta-decay transit…

Mirror symmetry at high spin in51Feand51Mn

Gamma decays from excited states in the ${T}_{z}=\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{2}$ nucleus ${}^{51}$Fe have been observed for the first time. The differences in excitation energies as compared with those of the mirror partner, ${}^{51}$Mn, have been interpreted in terms of Coulomb effects and the resulting Coulomb energy differences (CED) can be understood intuitively in terms of particle-alignment effects. A new CED effect has been observed, in which different CED trends have been measured for each signature of the rotational structures that characterize these mid-${f}_{7/2}$ shell nuclei. Large-scale $\mathrm{fp}$-shell model calculations have been used to compute the trends of the CED as a func…

Nuclear weak response from the combined study of beta-decay and charge-exchange reaction

Studying the weak nuclear response, especially the Gamow-Teller (GT) transitions, of stable as well as unstable pf-shell nuclei, is one of the key issues in nuclear and astro-nuclear physics. We study the decay half-lives and the GT transitions starting from Tz = ±1 and ±2 mirror nuclei, respectively, by means of β decays and complementary hadronic (3 He , t) charge-exchange reactions. Under the assumption that isospin is a good quantum number, symmetry is expected for mirror nuclei and the GT transitions starting from the mirror nuclei. The half-lives and branching ratios and the measured strength distributions of GT transitions are compared and also combined for the understanding of the …

Comparison of T[sub z] = ±1→0 GT Transitions

Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions can be studied in both β‐decay and charge exchange(CE) reactions. If isospin is a good quantum number, then the Tz = −1→0 and Tz = +1→0 GT mirror transitions, are identical. Therefore, a comparison of the results from studies of β decay and CE should shed light on this assumption. Accordingly we have studied the β decay of the Tz = −1 fp‐shell nuclei, 54Ni, 50Fe, 46Cr, and 42Ti, produced in fragmentation and we have compared our results with the spectra from (3He, t) measurements on the mirror Tz = +1 target nuclei studied in high resolution at RCNP, Osaka. The β‐decay experiments were performed as part of the STOPPED beam RISING campaign at GSI.

Nucleon transfer via (d,p) using TIARA with a24Ne radioactive beam

NESTER; The first physics results measured using the TIARA array are reported. The reaction $^{24}$Ne(d,p)$^{25}$Ne has been studied in inverse kinematics with a radioactive beam of $^(24)$Ne provided by SPIRAL at GANIL. TIARA is very compact with a high geometrical coverage for charged particles, and is designed specifically for the study of transfer reactions in inverse kinematics, with radioactive beams. From the (d,p) differential cross sections, the ground state of $^{25}$Ne is assigned to have $J^\pi$ = $1/2^+$ and the lowest states with $J^\pi$ = $5/2^+$ and $3/2^+$ are tentatively identified at excitation energies of 1.70 and 2.05 (±0.05) MeV, respectively. Coincident gamma-ray data…

Study of M1 and E1 excitations by high-resolution proton inelastic scattering measurement at forward angles

Experimental technique for measuring proton inelastic scattering with high‐resolution at 295 MeV and at forward angles including zero degrees is described. The method is useful for extracting spin part of the M1 strength via nuclear excitation as well as E1 strength via Coulomb excitation. An excitation energy resolution of 20 keV, good scattering angle resolution, and low background condition have been achieved. The experimental technique was applied for several sd and pf shell nuclei.

Characterization of a neutron-beta counting system with beta-delayed neutron emitters

Abstract A new detection system for the measurement of beta-delayed neutron emission probabilities has been characterized using fission products with well known β-delayed neutron emission properties. The setup consists of BELEN-20, a 4π neutron counter with twenty 3He proportional tubes arranged inside a large polyethylene neutron moderator, a thin Si detector for β counting and a self-triggering digital data acquisition system. The use of delayed-neutron precursors with different neutron emission windows allowed the study of the effect of energy dependency on neutron, β and β–neutron rates. The observed effect is well reproduced by Monte Carlo simulations. The impact of this dependency on …

High-resolution study ofTz=+2→+1Gamow-Teller transitions in the44Ca(3He,t)44Sc reaction

Deformation of Sr and Rb isotopes close to theN=Zline viaβ-decay studies using the total absorption technique

A study of the Gamow-Teller strength distributions $B$(GT) in the beta decay of ${}^{78}$Sr and ${}^{76,78}$Rb has been made using a total absorption spectrometer (TAS). Following the success in deducing the sign of the deformation for ${}^{76}$Sr, a similar approach is adopted for ${}^{78}$Sr based on a comparison of the measured $B$(GT) with quasiparticle random-phase approximation calculations. This work confirms its previously expected prolate deformation in the ground state. Conclusions about the structure of the odd-odd ${}^{76,78}$Rb isotopes have been drawn based on their measured $B$(GT) distributions.

Pronounced shape change induced by quasiparticle alignment

Mean lifetimes of high-spin states of Kr-74 have been determined using the Doppler-shift attenuation method. The high-spin states were studied using the Ca-40(Ca-40, alpha 2p) reaction at a beam energy of 160 MeV with the GASP gamma-ray spectrometer. The ground-state band and negative parity side band show the presence of three different configurations in terms of transitional quadrupole deformations. A dramatic shape change was found along the ground-state band after the S-band crossing. The deduced quadrupole deformation changes are well reproduced by cranked Woods-Saxon Strutinsky calculations.

Effect of focal cerebellar lesions on procedural learning in the serial reaction time task

Prior studies have shown that procedural learning is severely impaired in patients with diffuse cerebellar damage (cortical degeneration) as measured by the serial reaction time task (SRTT). We hypothesize that focal cerebellar lesions can also have lateralized effects on procedural learning. Our objective was to assess the effects of focal cerebellar lesions in procedural learning as measured by the SRTT. We studied 14 patients with single, unilateral vascular lesions in the territory of the posterior-inferior or superior cerebellar artery, who were compared with ten age- and sex-matched controls in a one-handed version of the SRTT. Patients with lesions at any other level of the brain or …

Total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy of beta delayed neutron emitters

Preliminary results of the data analysis of the beta decay of 94Rb using a novel - segmented- total absorption spectrometer are shown in this contribution. This result is part of a systematic study of important contributors to the decay heat problem in nuclear reactors. In this particular case the goal is to determine the beta intensity distribution below the neutron separation energy and the gamma/beta competition above.

Beta decay studies with total absorption spectroscopy and the Lucrecia spectrometer at ISOLDE

26 pags., 21 figs., tab. -- Open Access funded by Creative Commons Atribution Licence 3.0

Applications of the total absorption technique to improve reactor decay heat calculations: study of the beta decay of [sup 102,104,105]Tc

The decay heat of the fission products plays an important role in predicting the heat‐up of nuclear fuel after reactor shutdown. This form of energy release is calculated as the sum of the energy‐weighted activities of all fission products P(t) = ΣEiλiNi(t), where Ei is the decay energy of nuclide i (gamma and beta component), λi is the decay constant of nuclide i and Ni(t) is the number of nuclide i at cooling time t. Even though the reproduction of the measured decay heat has improved in recent years, there is still a long standing discrepancy at t∼1000 s cooling time for some fuels. A possible explanation for this disagreement can been found in the work of Yoshida et al. [1], who demonst…

Multipleβ−decaying states in194Re: Shape evolution in neutron-rich osmium isotopes

decays from heavy, neutron-rich nuclei with A∼190 have been investigated following their production via the relativistic projectile fragmentation of an E/A=1 GeV 208Pb primary beam on a ∼2.5 g/cm2 9Be target. The reaction products were separated and identified using the GSI FRagment Separator (FRS) and stopped in the RISING active stopper. γ decays were observed and correlated with these secondary ions on an event-by-event basis such that γ-ray transitions following from both internal (isomeric) and β decays were recorded. A number of discrete, β-delayed γ-ray transitions associated with β decays from 194Re to excited states in 194Os have been observed, including previously reported decays …

Beta decay of the exotic Tz = - 2, $^{56}$Zn nucleus and half-life of various proton-rich Tz = -1 nuclei

Expérience GANIL/LISE3/EXOGAM; International audience; Preliminary results of an experimental study of the beta -decay of the exotic T$_z$ = - 2, $^{56}$Zn nucleus and other proton-rich T$_z$ = -1 nuclei are presented. The ions were produced at GANIL using fragmentation reactions, separated by the LISE3 spectrometer and implanted in a double-sided silicon strip detector surrounded by Ge detectors. The half-lives of $^{56}$Zn and four T$_z$ = -1 nuclei in the fp-shell have been measured. While the decay of the T$_z$ = -1 nuclei proceeds essentially by -delayed gamma emission, in the case of $^{56}$Zn -delayed proton emission is also observed. Moreover, the exotic -delayed gamma-proton decay …

β-decay data requirements for reactor decay heat calculations: study of the possible source of the gamma-ray discrepancy in reactor heat summation calculations

The decay heat of fission products plays an important role in predictions of the heat up of nuclear fuel in reactors. The released energy is calculated as the summation of the activities of allfission products P(t) = Ei λi Ni(t), where Ei is the decay energy of nuclide i (gamma and beta component), λi is the decay constant of nuclide i and Ni(t) is the number of nuclide i at cooling time t. Even though the reproduction of the measured decay heat has improved in recent years, there is still a long standing discrepancy in the t ∼ 1000s cooling time for some fuels. A possible explanation to this improper description has been found in the work of Yoshida et al. (1), where it has been shown that…

Study of the $��$-decay of $^{100}$Tc with Total Absorption $��$-Ray Spectroscopy

The \b{eta}-decay of 100 Tc has been studied using the Total Absorption ��-Ray Spectroscopy technique at IGISOL. In this work the new DTAS spectrometer in coincidence with a cylindrical plastic \b{eta} detector has been employed. The \b{eta}-intensity to the ground state obtained from the analysis is in good agreement with previous high-resolution measurements. However, differences in the feeding to the first excited state as well as weak feeding to a new level at high excitation energy have been deduced from this experiment. Theoretical calculations performed in the quasiparticle random- phase approximation (QRPA) framework are also reported. Comparison of these calculations with our measu…

Results of DTAS Campaign at IGISOL : Overview

The β decays of more than twenty fission fragments were measured in the first experiments with radioactive-ion beams employing the Decay Total Absorption γ-ray Spectrometer. In this work, we summarize the main results obtained so far from this experimental campaign carried out at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility. The advances introduced for these studies represent the state-of-the-art of our analysis methodology for segmented spectrometers. peerReviewed

Total Absorption Spectroscopy of Fission Fragments Relevant for Reactor Antineutrino Spectra and Decay Heat Calculations

Beta decay of fission products is at the origin of decay heat and antineutrino emission in nuclear reactors. Decay heat represents about 7% of the reactor power during operation and strongly impacts reactor safety. Reactor antineutrino detection is used in several fundamental neutrino physics experiments and it can also be used for reactor monitoring and non-proliferation purposes. 92,93Rb are two fission products of importance in reactor antineutrino spectra and decay heat, but their β-decay properties are not well known. New measurements of 92,93Rb β-decay properties have been performed at the IGISOL facility (Jyväskylä, Finland) using Total Absorption Spectroscopy (TAS). TAS is complemen…

Tz=−1→0βdecays ofNi54,Fe50,Cr46, andTi42and comparison with mirror(He3,t)measurements

We have studied the β decay of the Tz=−1, f7/2 shell nuclei Ni54, Fe50, Cr46, and Ti42 produced in fragmentation reactions. The proton separation energies in the daughter Tz=0 nuclei are relatively large (≈4–5 MeV) so studies of the γ rays are essential. The experiments were performed at GSI as part of the Stopped-beam campaign with the RISING setup consisting of 15 Euroball Cluster Ge detectors. From the newly obtained high precision β-decay half-lives, excitation energies, and β branching ratios, we were able to extract Fermi and Gamow-Teller transition strengths in these β decays. With these improved results it was possible to compare in detail the Gamow-Teller (GT) transition strengths …

Experimental study of Gamow-Teller transitions via the high-energy-resolution O18(He3,t)F18 reaction: Identification of the low-energy “super” -Gamow-Teller state

Study of the $\beta$-decay of $^{100}$Tc with Total Absorption $\gamma$-Ray Spectroscopy

The \b{eta}-decay of 100 Tc has been studied using the Total Absorption {\gamma}-Ray Spectroscopy technique at IGISOL. In this work the new DTAS spectrometer in coincidence with a cylindrical plastic \b{eta} detector has been employed. The \b{eta}-intensity to the ground state obtained from the analysis is in good agreement with previous high-resolution measurements. However, differences in the feeding to the first excited state as well as weak feeding to a new level at high excitation energy have been deduced from this experiment. Theoretical calculations performed in the quasiparticle random- phase approximation (QRPA) framework are also reported. Comparison of these calculations with our…

Two-Proton Radioactivity ofKr67

In an experiment with the BigRIPS separator at the RIKEN Nishina Center, we observed two-proton (2p) emission from 67Kr. At the same time, no evidence for 2p emission of 59Ge and 63Se, two other potential candidates for this exotic radioactivity, could be observed. This observation is in line with Q value predictions which pointed to 67Kr as being the best new candidate among the three for two-proton radioactivity. 67Kr is only the fourth 2p ground-state emitter to be observed with a half-life of the order of a few milliseconds. The decay energy was determined to be 1690(17) keV, the 2p emission branching ratio is 37(14)%, and the half-life of 67Kr is 7.4(30) ms.

Fine structure of the Gamow-Teller resonance revealed in the decay of150Ho2−isomer

The $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays following the $72s$ ${}^{150}\mathrm{Ho}$ ${2}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ Gamow-Teller $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay have been investigated with the CLUSTER CUBE setup, an array of six EUROBALL CLUSTER Ge detectors in close cubic geometry, providing a $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ ray detection sensitivity of $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ per $\ensuremath{\beta}$-parent decay for $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray energies up to 5 MeV. The fine structure of the Gamow-Teller resonance at 4.4-MeV excitation in ${}^{150}\mathrm{Dy}$ has been studied. The resolved levels are compared with Shell Model predictions.

FIRST RESULTS WITH THE RISING ACTIVE STOPPER

This paper outlines some of the physics opportunities available with the GSI RISING active stopper and presents preliminary results from an experiment aimed at performing beta-delayed gamma-ray spectroscopic studies in heavy-neutron-rich nuclei produced following the projectile fragmentation of a 1 GeV per nucleon 208 Pb primary beam. The energy response of the silicon active stopping detector for both heavy secondary fragments and beta-particles is demonstrated and preliminary results on the decays of neutron-rich Tantalum ( Ta ) to Tungsten ( W ) isotopes are presented as examples of the potential of this technique to allow new structural studies in hitherto experimentally unreachable he…

Decay of theN=126, Fr213nucleus

gamma rays following the EC/beta(+) and alpha decay of the N = 126, Fr-213 nucleus have been observed at the CERN isotope separator on-line (ISOLDE) facility with the help of gamma-ray and conversion-electron spectroscopy. These gamma rays establish several hitherto unknown excited states in Rn-213. Also, five new a-decay branches from the Fr-213 ground state have been discovered. Shell model calculations have been performed to understand the newly observed states in Rn-213.

Total Absorption Study of Beta Decays Relevant for Nuclear Applications and Nuclear Structure

Abstract An overview is given of our activities related to the study of the beta decay of neutron rich nuclei relevant for nuclear applications. Recent results of the study of the beta decay of 87,88 Br using a new segmented total absorption spectrometer are presented. The measurements were performed at the IGISOL facility using trap-assisted total absorption spectroscopy.

β decay of the very neutron-deficient Ge60 and Ge62 nuclei

We report here the results of a study of the $\beta$ decay of the proton-rich Ge isotopes, $^{60}$Ge and $^{62}$Ge, produced in an experiment at the RIKEN Nishina Center. We have improved our knowledge of the half-lives of $^{62}$Ge (73.5(1) ms), $^{60}$Ge (25.0(3) ms) and its daughter nucleus, $^{60}$Ga (69.4(2) ms). We measured individual $\beta$-delayed proton and $\gamma$ emissions and their related branching ratios. Decay schemes and absolute Fermi and Gamow-Teller transition strengths have been determined. The mass excesses of the nuclei under study have been deduced. A total $\beta$-delayed proton-emission branching ratio of 67(3)% has been obtained for $^{60}$Ge. New information has…

Total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy of the β-delayed neutron emitters 137I and 95Rb

The decays of the β-delayed neutron emitters 137I and 95Rb have been studied with the total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy technique. The purity of the beams provided by the JYFLTRAP Penning trap at the ion guide isotope separator on-line facility in Jyväskylä allowed us to carry out a campaign of isotopically pure measurements with the decay total absorption γ-ray spectrometer, a segmented detector composed of 18 NaI(Tl) modules. The contamination coming from the interaction of neutrons with the spectrometer has been carefully studied, and we have tested the use of time differences between prompt γ rays and delayed neutron interactions to eliminate this source of contamination. Due to the s…

The $T_{z} = \pm 1 \to 0$ and $\pm 2 \to \pm 1$ Mirror Gamow--Teller Transitions in $pf$-shell Nuclei

Gamow–Teller (GT) transitions are the most common weak-interaction processes in the Universe. They play important roles in various processes of nucleosynthesis, for example, in the rapid proton-capture process (rp-process). In the pf-shell region, the rp-process runs through neutron-deficient nuclei with Tz = −2, −1, and 0 mainly by means of GT and Fermi transitions, where Tz is the z component of isospin T defined by Tz = (N − Z)∕2. Under the assumption of isospin symmetry, mirror nuclei with reversed Z and N numbers, and thus with opposite signs of Tz, have the same structure. Therefore, symmetry is also expected for the GT transitions starting from and ending up in mirror nuclei. We have…

Half-Life Systematics across theN=126Shell Closure: Role of First-Forbidden Transitions in theβDecay of Heavy Neutron-Rich Nuclei

This Letter reports on a systematic study of β-decay half-lives of neutron-rich nuclei around doubly magic Pb208. The lifetimes of the 126-neutron shell isotone Pt204 and the neighboring Ir200-202, Pt203, Au204 are presented together with other 19 half-lives measured during the "stopped beam" campaign of the rare isotope investigations at GSI collaboration. The results constrain the main nuclear theories used in calculations of r-process nucleosynthesis. Predictions based on a statistical macroscopic description of the first-forbidden β strength reveal significant deviations for most of the nuclei with N<126. In contrast, theories including a fully microscopic treatment of allowed and first…

New Beta-delayed Neutron Measurements in the Light-mass Fission Group

A new accurate determination of beta-delayed neutron emission probabilities from nuclei in the low mass region of the light fission group has been performed. The measurements were carried out using the BELEN 4π neutron counter at the IGISOL-JYFL mass separator in combination with a Penning trap. The new results significantly improve the uncertainties of neutron emission probabilities for {sup 91}Br, {sup 86}As, {sup 85}As, and {sup 85}Ge nuclei.

TheNd150(He3,t) andSm150(t,He3) reactions with applications toββdecay ofNd150

The {sup 150}Nd({sup 3}He,t) reaction at 140 MeV/u and {sup 150}Sm(t,{sup 3}He) reaction at 115 MeV/u were measured, populating excited states in {sup 150}Pm. The transitions studied populate intermediate states of importance for the (neutrinoless) {beta}{beta} decay of {sup 150}Nd to {sup 150}Sm. Monopole and dipole contributions to the measured excitation-energy spectra were extracted by using multipole decomposition analyses. The experimental results were compared with theoretical calculations obtained within the framework of the quasiparticle random-phase approximation, which is one of the main methods employed for estimating the half-life of the neutrinoless {beta}{beta} decay (0{nu}{b…

The BRIKEN Project: Extensive Measurements of $\beta $-delayed Neutron Emitters for the Astrophysical r Process

An ambitious program to measure decay properties, primarily β-delayed neutron emission probabilities and half-lives, for a significant number of nuclei near or on the path of the rapid neutron capture process, has been launched at the RIKEN Nishina Center. We give here an overview of the status of the project.

β-decay study of150Er,152Yb, and156Yb: Candidates for a monoenergetic neutrino beam facility

The beta decays of ^{150}Er, ^{152}Yb, and ^{156}Yb nuclei are investigated using the total absorption spectroscopy technique. These nuclei can be considered possible candidates for forming the beam of a monoenergetic neutrino beam facility based on the electron capture (EC) decay of radioactive nuclei. Our measurements confirm that for the cases studied, the EC decay proceeds mainly to a single state in the daughter nucleus.

Nonquenched Isoscalar Spin-M1Excitations insd-Shell Nuclei

Differential cross sections of isoscalar and isovector spin-M1 (0(+)→1(+)) transitions are measured using high-energy-resolution proton inelastic scattering at E(p)=295  MeV on (24)Mg, (28)Si, (32)S, and (36)Ar at 0°-14°. The squared spin-M1 nuclear transition matrix elements are deduced from the measured differential cross sections by applying empirically determined unit cross sections based on the assumption of isospin symmetry. The ratios of the squared nuclear matrix elements accumulated up to E(x)=16  MeV compared to a shell-model prediction are 1.01(9) for isoscalar and 0.61(6) for isovector spin-M1 transitions, respectively. Thus, no quenching is observed for isoscalar spin-M1 transi…

Enhanced Gamma-Ray Emission from Neutron Unbound States Populated in Beta Decay

International audience; Total absorption spectroscopy was used to investigate the beta-decay intensity to states above the neutron separation energy followed by gamma-ray emission in 87,88Br and 94Rb. Accurate results were obtained thanks to a careful control of systematic errors. An unexpectedly large gamma intensity was observed in all three cases extending well beyond the excitation energy region where neutron penetration is hindered by low neutron energy. The gamma branching as a function of excitation energy was compared to Hauser-Feshbach model calculations. For 87Br and 88Br the gamma branching reaches 57% and 20% respectively, and could be explained as a nuclear structure effect. So…

High-resolution study of Gamow-Teller transitions in the47Ti(3He,t)47V reaction

In this work we have studied ${T}_{z}=+2\ensuremath{\rightarrow}+1$, Gamow-Teller (GT) transitions in the $^{48}\mathrm{Ti}(^{3}\mathrm{He},t)^{48}\mathrm{V}$ charge-exchange reaction at 140 MeV/nucleon and ${0}^{\ensuremath{\circ}}$ at the Research Center for Nuclear Physics, Osaka. From the high-resolution facility, consisting of a high-dispersion beamline and the Grand Raiden spectrometer, the spectrum had an energy resolution of 21 keV, among the best achieved. Individual GT transitions were observed and GT strength was derived for each state populated up to an excitation energy of 12 MeV. The total sum of the $B$(GT) strength observed in discrete states was 4.0, which is 33% of the sum…

Total Absorption Spectroscopy of Fission Fragments Relevant for Reactor Antineutrino Spectra Determination

8 pags., 3 figs., 1 tab. ; Presented at the XXXIV Mazurian Lakes Conference on Physics, Piaski, Poland, September 6–13, 2015.

Total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy of the β -delayed neutron emitters Br87 , Br88 , and Rb94

We investigate the decay of 87,88Br and 94Rb using total absorption γ -ray spectroscopy. These important fission products are β-delayed neutron emitters. Our data show considerable βγ intensity, so far unobserved in high-resolution γ -ray spectroscopy, from states at high excitation energy. We also find significant differences with the β intensity that can be deduced from existing measurements of the β spectrum. We evaluate the impact of the present data on reactor decay heat using summation calculations. Although the effect is relatively small it helps to reduce the discrepancy between calculations and integral measurements of the photon component for 235U fission at cooling times in the r…

β -decay half-lives and β -delayed neutron emission probabilities for several isotopes of Au, Hg, Tl, Pb, and Bi, beyond N=126

Background: Previous measurements of Beta-delayed neutron emitters comprise around 230 nuclei, spanning from the 8He up to 150La. Apart from 210Tl, with a minuscule branching ratio of 0.07%, no other neutron emitter is measured yet beyond A = 150. Therefore new data are needed, particularly in the heavy mass region around N=126, in order to guide theoretical models and to understand the formation of the third r-process peak at A 195. Purpose: To measure both, Beta-decay half-lives and neutron branching ratios of several neutron-rich Au, Hg, Tl, Pb and Bi isotopes beyond N = 126. Method: Ions of interest are produced by fragmentation of a 238U beam, selected and identifed via the GSI-FRS fra…

High-resolution study of Gamow-Teller excitations in theCa42(He3,t)Sc42reaction and the observation of a “low-energy super-Gamow-Teller state”

Y. Fujita et al.; 15 pags.; 6 figs.; 7 tabs.; PACS number(s): 21.10.Hw, 25.55.Kr, 27.40.+z, 25.40.Ep

Measurement of high energy resolution inelastic proton scattering at and close to zero degrees

13 pages, 15 figures.-- Printed version published Jul 1, 2009.

Structures ofPo201andRn205from EC/β+-decay studies

Several low-lying excited states in {sub 86}{sup 205}Rn{sub 119} and {sub 84}{sup 201}Po{sub 117} were identified for the first time following EC/{beta}{sup +} decay of {sup 205}Fr and {sup 201}At, respectively, using {gamma}-ray and conversion electron spectroscopy at the CERN isotope separator on-line (ISOLDE) facility. The EC/{beta}{sup +} branch from {sup 205}Fr was measured to be 1.5(2)%. The excited states of the daughter nuclei are understood in terms of the odd nucleon coupling to the neighboring even-even core. The neutron single-particle energies of the p{sub 3/2} orbital relative to the f{sub 5/2} ground state in {sup 205}Rn, and the f{sub 5/2} orbital relative to the p{sub 3/2} …

Simultaneous investigation of the T=1(Jπ=0+) and T=0(Jπ=9+) β decays in Br70

The $\beta$ decay of the odd-odd nucleus $^{70}$Br has been investigated with the BigRIPS and EURICA setups at the Radioactive Ion Beam Factory (RIBF) of the RIKEN Nishina Center. The $T=0$ ($J^{\pi}=9^+$) and $T=1$ ($J^{\pi}=0^+$) isomers have both been produced in in-flight fragmentation of $^{78}$Kr with ratios of 41.6(8)\% and 58.4(8)\%, respectively. A half-life of $t_{1/2}=2157^{+53}_{-49}$ ms has been measured for the $J^{\pi}=9^+$ isomer from $\gamma$-ray time decay analysis. Based on this result, we provide a new value of the half-life for the $J^{\pi}=0^+$ ground state of $^{70}$Br, $t_{1/2}=78.42\pm0.51$ ms, which is slightly more precise, and in excellent agreement, with the bes…

r Process (n, γ) Rate Constraints from the γ Emission of Neutron Unbound States in β decay

Total absorption gamma-ray spectroscopy is used to measure accurately the intensity of γγ emission from neutron-unbound states populated in the ββ-decay of delayed-neutron emitters. From the comparison of this intensity with the intensity of neutron emission a constraint on the (n, γγ) cross section for highly unstable neutron-rich nuclei can be deduced. A surprisingly large γγ branching was observed for a number of isotopes which might indicate the need to increase by a large factor the Hauser-Feshbach (n, γγ) cross-section estimates that impact on r process abundance calculations. peerReviewed

Total Absorption Spectroscopy Study ofRb92Decay: A Major Contributor to Reactor Antineutrino Spectrum Shape

The antineutrino spectra measured in recent experiments at reactors are inconsistent with calculations based on the conversion of integral beta spectra recorded at the ILL reactor. (92)Rb makes the dominant contribution to the reactor antineutrino spectrum in the 5-8 MeV range but its decay properties are in question. We have studied (92)Rb decay with total absorption spectroscopy. Previously unobserved beta feeding was seen in the 4.5-5.5 region and the GS to GS feeding was found to be 87.5(25)%. The impact on the reactor antineutrino spectra calculated with the summation method is shown and discussed.

Hindered Gamow-Teller Decay to the Odd-OddN=ZGa62: Absence of Proton-NeutronT=0Condensate inA=62

Search for a new kind of superfluidity built on collective proton-neutron pairs with aligned spin is performed studying the Gamow-Teller decay of the T=1, Jπ=0+ ground state of Ge62 into excited states of the odd-odd N=Z nucleus Ga62. The experiment is performed at GSI Helmholtzzentrum fur Schwerionenforschung with the Ge62 ions selected by the fragment separator and implanted in a stack of Si-strip detectors, surrounded by the RISING Ge array. A half-life of T1/2=82.9(14) ms is measured for the Ge62 ground state. Six excited states of Ga62, populated below 2.5 MeV through Gamow-Teller transitions, are identified. Individual Gamow-Teller transition strengths agree well with theoretical pred…

Angular momentum population in fragmentation reactions

Neutron-deficient nuclei with N = 126 have been populated following projectile fragmentation of a 238U beam with energy 1 GeV/A. The decay of several previously reported isomers has been measured. This will allow us to calculate high-spin isomeric ratios and compare them with model calculations to allow a better understanding of the reaction mechanism. Algora, Alejandro, Alejandro.Algora@ific.uv.es ; Molina Palacios, Francisco Manuel, Francisco.Molina@ific.uv.es ; Rubio Barroso, Berta, Berta.Rubio@ific.uv.es

Comparison of T[sub z] = ±1→0 GT Transitions Studied in β—decay and CE Reactions

Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions can be studied in both β‐ decay and charge exchange(CE) reactions. If isospin is a good quantum number, then the Tz = −1→0 and Tz = +1→0 GT mirror transitions, are identical. Therefore, a comparison of the results from studies of β decay and CE should shed light on this assumption. Accordingly we have studied the β decay of the Tz = −1 fp‐shell nuclei, 54Ni, 50Fe, 46Cr, and 42Ti, produced in fragmentation and we have compared our results with the spectra from (3He, t) measurements on the mirror Tz = +1 target nuclei studied in high resolution at RCNP, Osaka. The experiments were performed as part of the STOPPED beam RISING campaign at GSI.

Structure of N >= 126 nuclei produced in fragmentation of (238)U

The nuclear structure of neutron‐rich N⩾126 nuclei have been investigated following their production via relativistic projectile fragmentation of a E/A = 1 GeV 238U beam on a Be target. The cocktail of secondary beam products were separated and identified using the GSI FRagment Separator (FRS). The nuclei of interest were implanted in a high‐granularity active stopper detector set‐up consisting of 6 double sided silicon strip detectors. The associated gamma‐ray transitions were detected with the RISING array, consisting of 15 Euroball cluster Ge‐detectors. Time‐correlated gamma decays from individually identified nuclear species have been recorded, allowing the clean identification of isome…

Two-Phonon Octupole Excitation in 146Gd

The excited states in 146Gd have been re‐investigated with the 144Sm(α,2n) reaction using a modern Ge γ‐ray array including a polarimeter. Amongst the non‐yrast states populated in this reaction we have identified the aligned 6+ member of the two‐phonon octupole quartet from the observation of the E3 branching to the one phonon 3− state. Our results represent the first observation of a 6+→3−→0+ E3 cascade in an even‐even nucleus.

The T[sub z] = −1→ T[sub z] =0 beta decays and comparison with Charge Exchange reactions

Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions can be studied in both β decay and charge exchange (CE) reactions. If isospin is a good quantum number, then the Tz = −1→0 and Tz = +1→0 GT mirror transitions, are identical. Therefore, a comparison of the results from studies of β decay and CE should shed light on this assumption. Accordingly we have studied the β decay of the Tz = −1 fp‐shell nuclei, 54Ni, 50Fe, 46Cr, and 42Ti, produced in fragmentation and we have compared our results with the spectra from (3He, t) measurements on the mirror Tz = +1 target nuclei studied in high resolution at RCNP, Osaka. The β decay experiments were performed as part of the STOPPED beam RISING campaign at GSI.

Total Absorption Spectroscopy

Some advances in science come when a new technique is available. There are many examples in the history of science. The advances usually provide the opportunity to see what was hidden to the well-e...

Gamow-Teller Transitions and β-decay Half-life in Proton Rich pf-shell Nuclei

In violent neutrino‐induced reactions at the core‐collapse stage of type II supernovae, Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions starting from stable as well as unstable pf‐shell nuclei play important roles. In the β‐decay study of these unstable pf‐shell nuclei, half‐lives can be measured rather accurately. On the other hand, in high‐resolution (3He,t) charge‐exchange reactions at 0°, individual GT transitions up to high excitations can be studied. Assuming the isospin symmetry for the strengths of Tz = ±2→±1 analogous GT transitions, we present a “merged analysis” for the determination of GT transition strengths starting from proton‐rich Tz = −2 nuclei. We applied this analysis to the A = 52, T = 2 …

Synthesis ofN=127isotones through (p,n) charge-exchange reactions induced by relativistic208Pb projectiles

The production cross sections of four N=127 isotones ({sup 207}Hg, {sup 206}Au, {sup 205}Pt, and {sup 204}Ir) have been measured using (p,n) charge-exchange reactions, induced in collisions of a {sup 208}Pb primary beam at 1 A GeV with a Be target. These data allow one to investigate the use of a reaction mechanism to extend the limits of the chart of nuclides toward the important r-process nuclei in the region of the third peak of elemental abundance distribution.

Trap-assisted decay spectroscopy with ISOLTRAP

Penning traps are excellent high-precision mass spectrometers for radionuclides. The high-resolving power used for cleaning isobaric and even isomeric contaminants can be exploited to improve decay-spectroscopy studies by delivering purified samples. An apparatus allowing trap-assisted decay spectroscopy has been coupled to the ISOLTRAP mass spectrometer at ISOLDE/CERN. The results from studies with stable and radioactive ions show that the setup can be used to perform decay studies on purified short-lived nuclides and to assist mass measurements. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

β-delayed neutron emission of r-process nuclei at the N = 82 shell closure

This experiment was performed at RI Beam Factory operated by RIKEN Nishina Center and CNS, University of Tokyo. O.H, T.D, P.J.W, C.G.B, C.J.G and D.K would like to thank STFC, UK for support. This research was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics, U.S. Department of Energy under Award No. DE-FG02-96ER40983 (UTK) and DEAC05-00OR22725 (ORNL), and by the National Nuclear Security Administration under the Stewardship Science Academic Alliances program through DOE Award No. DENA0002132. This work was supported by National Science Foundation under Grants No. PHY-1430152 (JINA Center for the Evolution of the Elements), No. PHY-1565546 (NSCL), and No. PHY-1714153 (Central Michigan Uni…

Beta Decay Studies of Neutron Rich Nuclei Using Total Absorption Gamma-ray Spectroscopy and Delayed Neutron Measurements

International audience; A complete characterisation of the β-decay of neutron-rich nuclei can be obtained from the measurement of β-delayed gamma rays and, whenever the process is energetically possible, β-delayed neutrons. The accurate determination of the β-intensity distribution and the β-delayed neutron emission probability is of great relevance in the fields of reactor technology and nuclear astrophysics. A programme for combined measurements using the total absorption gamma-ray spectroscopy technique and both neutron counters and neutron time-of-flight spectrometers is presented.

Gamow–Teller transitions in exotic pf-shell nuclei relevant to supernova explosion

Gamow–Teller (GT) transitions starting from unstable pf-shell nuclei are of interest not only in nuclear physics, but also in astrophysics, e.g. in violent neutrino induced reactions at the core-collapse stage of type II supernovae. In the β-decay study of these pf-shell nuclei, half-lives can be measured rather accurately. On the other hand, in high-resolution (3He, t) charge-exchange reactions at 0°, individual GT transitions up to high excitations can be studied. Assuming the isospin symmetry for the strengths of Tz = ±1 → 0 analogous GT transitions, we present a unique 'merged analysis' for the determination of absolute B(GT) values.

Observation of theβ-Delayedγ-Proton Decay ofZn56and its Impact on the Gamow-Teller Strength Evaluation

We report the observation of a very exotic decay mode at the proton drip line, the $\ensuremath{\beta}$-delayed $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-proton decay, clearly seen in the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay of the ${T}_{z}=\ensuremath{-}2$ nucleus $^{56}\mathrm{Zn}$. Three $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-proton sequences have been observed after the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ decay. Here this decay mode, already observed in the $sd$ shell, is seen for the first time in the $fp$ shell. Both $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ and proton decays have been taken into account in the estimation of the Fermi and Gamow-Teller strengths. Evidence for fragmentation of the Fermi strength due to strong isospin mixing is found.

Gamow--Teller Excitations Studied by Weak and Strong Interactions

β-delayed neutron emission measurements around the third r-process abundance peak

This contribution summarizes an experiment performed at GSI (Germany) in the neutron-rich region beyond N=126. The aim of this measurement is to provide the nuclear physics input of relevance for r-process model calculations, aiming at a better understanding of the third r-process abundance peak. Many exotic nuclei were measured around 211Hg and 215Tl. Final ion identification diagrams are given in this contribution. For most of them, we expect to derive halflives and and β-delayed neutron emission probabilities. The detectors used in this experiment were the Silicon IMplantation and Beta Absorber (SIMBA) detector, based on an array of highly segmented silicon detectors, and the BEta deLayE…

Novel Techniques for Constraining Neutron-capture Rates relevant to Heavy-element Nucleosynthesis

In this contribution we discuss new experimental approaches to indirectly provide information on neutron-capture rates relevant to the $r$-process. In particular, we focus on applications of the Oslo method to extract fundamental nuclear properties for reaction-rate calculations: the nuclear level density and the $\gamma$ strength function. Two methods are discussed in detail, the Oslo method in inverse kinematics and the beta-Oslo method. These methods present a first step towards constraining neutron-capture rates of importance to the $r$-process.

Lifetime Measurements of the Neutron-RichN=30IsotonesCa50andSc51: Orbital Dependence of Effective Charges in thefpShell

The lifetimes of the first excited states of the N=30 isotones Ca-50 and Sc-51 have been determined using the Recoil Distance Doppler Shift method in combination with the CLARA-PRISMA spectrometers. This is the first time such a method is applied to measure lifetimes of neutron-rich nuclei populated via a multinucleon transfer reaction. This extends the lifetime knowledge beyond the f(7/2) shell closure and allows us to derive the effective proton and neutron charges in the fp shell near the doubly magic nucleus Ca-48, using large-scale, shell-model calculations. These results indicate an orbital dependence of the core polarization along the fp shell.

Experimental Neutron Capture Rate Constraint Far from Stability

Nuclear reactions where an exotic nucleus captures a neutron are critical for a wide variety of applications, from energy production and national security, to astrophysical processes, and nucleosynthesis. Neutron capture rates are well constrained near stable isotopes where experimental data are available; however, moving far from the valley of stability, uncertainties grow by orders of magnitude. This is due to the complete lack of experimental constraints, as the direct measurement of a neutron-capture reaction on a short-lived nucleus is extremely challenging. Here, we report on the first experimental extraction of a neutron capture reaction rate on ^{69}Ni, a nucleus that is five neutro…

First experiment with the NUSTAR/FAIR Decay Total Absorption γ-Ray Spectrometer (DTAS) at the IGISOL IV facility

V. Guadilla et al. ; 4 págs.; 4 figs.; 1 tab.

TAS measurements for reactor physics and nuclear structure

In this contribution we will present recent total absorption measurements of the beta decay of neutron‐rich nuclei performed at the IGISOL facility of the Univ. of Jyvaskyla. In the measurements the JYFL Penning Trap was used as a high resolution isobaric separator. The total absorption technique will be described and the impact of recent results in the fields of reactor physics (decay heat calculations) and nuclear structure will be discussed.

Characterization of a cylindrical plastic {\beta}-detector with Monte Carlo simulations of optical photons

V. Guadilla et al. -- 5 pags., 8 figs., tab.

Migration of Nuclear Shell Gaps Studied in thed(Ne24,pγ)Ne25Reaction

The transfer of neutrons onto 24Ne has been measured using a reaccelerated radioactive beam of 24Ne to study the (d,p) reaction in inverse kinematics. The unusual raising of the first 3/2+ level in 25Ne and its significance in terms of the migration of the neutron magic number from N=20 to N=16 is put on a firm footing by confirmation of this state's identity. The raised 3/2+ level is observed simultaneously with the intruder negative parity 7/2- and 3/2- levels, providing evidence for the reduction in the N=20 gap. The coincident gamma-ray decays allowed the assignment of spins as well as the transferred orbital angular momentum. The excitation energy of the 3/2+ state shows that the estab…

β-decay and β-delayed Neutron Emission Measurements at GSI-FRS Beyond N=126, for r-process Nucleosynthesis

New measurements of very exotic nuclei in the neutron-rich region beyond N=126 have been performed at the GSI facility with the fragment separator (FRS). The aim of the experiment is to determine half-lives and β-delayed neutron emission branching ratios of isotopes of Hg, Tl and Pb in this region. This contribution summarizes final counting statistics for identification and for implantation, as well as the present status of the data analysis of the half-lives. In summary, isotopes of Pt, Au, Hg, Tl, Pb, Bi, Po, At, Rn and Fr were clearly identified and several of them (208-211Hg, 211-215Tl, 214-218Pb) were implanted with enough statistics to determine their half-lives. About half of them a…

The $^{150}$Nd($^3$He,$t$) and $^{150}$Sm($t$,$^3$He) reactions with applications to $\beta\beta$ decay of $^{150}$Nd

The $^{150}$Nd($^3$He,$t$) reaction at 140 MeV/u and $^{150}$Sm($t$,$^3$He) reaction at 115 MeV/u were measured, populating excited states in $^{150}$Pm. The transitions studied populate intermediate states of importance for the (neutrinoless) $\beta\beta$ decay of $^{150}$Nd to $^{150}$Sm. Monopole and dipole contributions to the measured excitation-energy spectra were extracted by using multipole decomposition analyses. The experimental results were compared with theoretical calculations obtained within the framework of Quasiparticle Random-Phase Approximation (QRPA), which is one of the main methods employed for estimating the half-life of the neutrinoless $\beta\beta$ decay ($0\nu\beta\…

Tz = ±1 → 0 ISOSPIN SYMMETRY GAMOW-TELLER TRANSITIONS IN pf-SHELL NUCLEI

Studying the Gamow-Teller (GT) transitions of stable as well as unstable pf-shell nuclei is one of the key issues in nuclear and astro-nuclear physics. Under the assumption that isospin T is a good quantum number, symmetry is expected for mirror nuclei and the GT transitions starting from the mirror nuclei. We study the GT transitions starting from Tz = ±1 mirror nuclei, respectively, by means of hadronic (3 He , t) charge-exchange reactions and complementary β decays.

TAGS measurements of $^{100}$Nb ground and isomeric states and $^{140}$Cs for neutrino physics with the new DTAS detector

V. Guadilla et al. -- 4 pags., 6 figs. -- Open Access funded by Creative Commons Atribution Licence 4.0

Beta Decay Study of the Tz=−2 56Zn Nucleus and the Determination of the Half-Lives of a Few fp-shell Nuclei

Abstract This paper concerns the experimental study of the β decay properties of few proton-rich fp -shell nuclei. The nuclei were produced at GANIL in fragmentation reactions, separated with the LISE spectrometer and stopped in an implantation detector surrounded by Ge detectors. The β -delayed gammas, β -delayed protons and the exotic β -delayed gamma-proton emission have been studied. Preliminary results are presented. The decay of the T z = − 2 nucleus 56 Zn has been studied in detail. Information from the β -delayed protons and β -delayed gammas has been used to deduce the decay scheme. The exotic beta-delayed gamma-proton decay has been observed for the first time in the fp -shell. Th…

Gamow-Teller Transitions in Proton Rich Exotic pf-shell Nuclei Deduced from Mirror Transitions

The rp‐process nucleosynthesis proceeds through nuclei near the proton drip‐line, in which Gamow‐Teller (GT) transitions starting from unstable pf‐shell nuclei play important roles. In the β‐decay study of these nuclei, half‐lives can be measured rather accurately. On the other hand, in the high‐resolution (3He, t) charge‐exchange reactions on mirror nuclei, individual GT transitions can be studied up to high excitations. For the accurate study of the GT transition strengths in the A = 52, T = 2, system, we compare and combine the β‐decay study of the proton‐rich nucleus 52Ni and the 52Cr(3He, t) measurement assuming the isospin symmetry of the Tz = ±2→±1 transitions.

Spin–isospin excitations probed by strong, weak and electro-magnetic interactions

Abstract Gamow–Teller (GT) transitions are the most common weak interaction processes of spin–isospin ( σ τ ) type in atomic nuclei. They are of interest not only in nuclear physics but also in astrophysics; they play an important role in supernovae explosions and nucleosynthesis. The direct study of weak decay processes, however, gives relatively limited information about GT transitions and the states excited via GT transitions (GT states); β decay can only access states at excitation energies lower than the decay Q -value, and neutrino-induced reactions have very small cross-sections. However, one should note that β decay has a direct access to the absolute GT transition strengths B (GT) …

Anomalous Coulomb matrix elements in thef7/2shell

γ decays from high-spin states in the N=Z-1 nucleus 2753Co26 have been identified for the first time. Level energies and Coulomb energy differences between these states and their analogs in its mirror nucleus 53Fe have been compared with large-scale pf shell-model calculations, which offer excellent agreement. New information has been obtained on two-proton Coulomb matrix elements needed in the interpretation. These have been extracted from the data via a number of methods and are shown to exhibit an anomalous behavior for the J=2 coupling.

Disentangling decaying isomers and searching for signatures of collective excitations in β decay

6 pags., 3 figs., 1 tab. -- 27th International Nuclear Physics Conference (INPC2019) 29 July - 2 August 2019, Glasgow, UK

AGATA-Advanced GAmma Tracking Array

WOS: 000300864200005