Alpha-gamma decay studies of 255No

The decay of ²⁵⁵No was investigated by means of α-γ spectroscopy. The isotope was produced in the reactions ²⁰⁸Pb(⁴⁸Ca, n)²⁵⁵No, , and $²³⁸U(²²Ne, 5n)²⁵⁵No$. Levels of the daughter nucleus ²⁵¹Fm were assigned by α-γ coincidence measurements and on the basis of systematics. Level energies were determined precisely using measured γ-rays. The results are compared with the known level schemes of the lighter isotones ²⁴⁷Cm and ²⁴⁹Cf as well as with data for ²⁵³No.     

ω- πγtransition form factor in proton-proton collisions

Dalitz decays of ω and ρ mesons, and , produced in pp collisions are calculated within a covariant effective meson-nucleon theory. We argue that the ω transition form factor is experimentally accessible in a fairly model-independent way in the reaction pp → ppπ⁰ e ⁺ e ^- for invariant masses of the π⁰ e ⁺ e ^- subsystem near the ω pole. Numerical results are presented for the intermediate-energy kinematics of envisaged HADES experiments.     

Loss of collectivity in 79Rb

High-spin states in ⁷⁹Rb were populated in the reaction at E(beam) = 60 MeV. The lifetimes of the excited states of the positive-parity yrast band and of the negative-parity band in ⁷⁹Rb were measured by the Doppler Shift Attenuation Method. The deduced transition quadrupole moments Q_t are found to have a decreasing trend with rotational frequency for both the bands, consistent with those found experimentally in neighbouring nuclei. An erratum to this article is available at .     

New experimental limits on violations of the Pauli exclusion principle obtained with the Borexino Counting Test Facility

The Pauli exclusion principle (PEP) has been tested for nucleons (n,p) in and nuclei, using the results of background measurements with the prototype of the Borexino detector, the Counting Test Facility (CTF). The approach consisted of a search for , n, p and/or s emitted in a non-Paulian transition of 1P- shell nucleons to the filled 1S _1/2 shell in nuclei. Similarly, the Pauli-forbidden decay processes were searched for. Due to the extremely low background and the large mass (4.2 tons) of the CTF detector, the following most stringent up-to-date experimental bounds on PEP violating transitions of nucleons have been established: , , , , and , all at C.L.Received: 18 June 2004, Published online: 1 October 2004PACS: 11.30.-j, 24.80. + y, 23.20.-g, 27.20. + nG. Bellini: SpokesmanL. Cadonati: Now at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, NW17-161, 175 Albany St. Cambridge, MA 02139O. Dadoun: Marie Curie fellowship at LNGS Correspondence to: A. Derbin. On leave of absence from St. Petersburg Nuclear Physics Inst. - Gatchina, RussiaM. Deutsch: DeceasedR. Ford: No w at Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, INCO Creighton Mine, P.O.Box 159 Lively, Ontario, Canada, P3Y 1M3B. Freudiger: Marie Curie fellowship at LNGS. Now at Institute for Nuclear Physics, Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Postfach 3640, 76021 KarlsruheS. Gazzana: GLIMOSV.V. Kobychev: Now at Institute for Nuclear Research, Prospekt Nauki 47, MSP 03680, Kiev, UkraineG. Korga: On leave of absence from KFKI-RMKI, Konkoly Thege ut 29-33 H-1121 Budapest, HungaryC. Lendvai: Marie Curie fellowship at LNGSP. Lombardi: Detector installation managerA. Martemianov: DeceasedV. Muratova: On leave of absence from St. Petersburg Nuclear Physics Inst. - Gatchina, RussiaL. Niedermeier: Marie Curie fellowship at LNGSL. Papp: On leave of absence from KFKI-RMKI, Konkoly Thege ut 29-33 H-1121 Budapest, HungaryR.S. Raghavan: Present Address: Department of Physics, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg VA 24061G. Ranucci: Project managerC. Salvo: Operational manager Correspondence to: O. SmirnovA. Sonnenschein: Center for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago, 933 E.56^th St., Chicago, IL 60637     

Study of fusion cross-section in heavy-ion fusion-fission reactions at around fusion barrier energies using the Langevin dynamical approach

The neutron detector with ³He -filled counters placed in the focal plane of the VASSILISSA separator is used for measuring the average number and determining the multiplicity distribution of prompt neutrons from the spontaneous fission of heavy short-lived isotopes. The test reaction $\ensuremath \mathrm{{}^{48}Ca}+\mathrm{{}^{206}Pb}=2{\rm n}+\mathrm{{}^{252}No}$ is used for tuning the separator settings and calibrating the detector system with the spontaneous fission of the ²⁵²No . The average neutron number per ²⁵²No spontaneous fission event is as large as $\ensuremath \bar{\nu}=4.06 \pm 0.12$ . The short-lived heavy isotope ²⁴⁴Fm , produced in the complete fusion reaction ⁴⁰Ar + ²⁰⁶Pb , is investigated. The average number of neutrons per spontaneous fission of ²⁴⁴Fm from the experimental data ( $\ensuremath \bar{\nu}=3.3 \pm 0.3$ is determined for the first time.     

Temperature dependence of yields from multi-foil SPES target

The temperature dependence of neutron-rich isotope yields was studied within the framework of the HRIBF-SPES Radioactive Ion Beams (RIB) project. On-line release measurements of fission fragments from a uranium carbide target at $\ensuremath 1600 {}^{\circ}\mathrm{C}$\ensuremath 1600 {}^{\circ}\mathrm{C} , 1800 ^°C\ensuremath 1800 {}^{\circ}\mathrm{C} and 2000 ^°C\ensuremath 2000 {}^{\circ}\mathrm{C} were performed at ORNL (USA). The fission reactions were induced by a 40MeV proton beam accelerated into a uranium carbide target coupled to a plasma ion source. The experiments allowed for tests of performance of the SPES multi-foil target prototype loaded with seven UC₂/graphite discs (ratio C/U = 4 with density about 4g/cm³.     

Lifetime vibrational interference during the NO 1s-1π* resonant excitation studied by the NO+(A 1Π → X 1Σ+) fluorescence

Dispersed fluorescence from fragments formed after the de-excitation of the 1s^-1π^* resonances of N^*O and NO^* has been measured in the spectral range of 118–142 nm. This range is dominated by lines of atomic nitrogen and oxygen fragments and by the bands in the NO⁺ ion which result from the participator Auger decay of the 1s^-1π^* resonances. Ab-initio calculations of the transition probabilities between vibrational levels during the reaction NO N^*O ⇒ NO were used to explain the observed intensity dependence for the fluorescence bands on the exciting-photon energy across the resonances and on both v^′ and v^′′ vibrational quantum numbers. The multiplet structure of the 1s^-1π^* resonance and lifetime vibrational interference explain the observed exciting-photon energy dependence of the fluorescence intensity. A strong spin-orbit coupling between singlet and triplet states of NO⁺ is proposed to reduce additional cascade population of the state via radiative transitions from the and states and to explain remaining differences between measured and calculated integral fluorescence intensities.     

Lowest- Q2 measurement of the γp → Δ reaction: Probing the pionic contribution

To determine nonspherical angular-momentum amplitudes in hadrons at long ranges (low Q²), data were taken for the p(ˉe, e'p)π⁰ reaction in the Δ region at Q ² = 0.060 (GeV/c)² utilizing the magnetic spectrometers of the A1 Collaboration at MAMI. The results for the dominant transition magnetic dipole amplitude and the quadrupole to dipole ratios at W = 1232 MeV are , Re( )%, and Re( )%. These disagree with predictions of constituent quark models but are in reasonable agreement with lattice calculations with nonlinear (chiral) pion mass extrapolations, with chiral effective field theory, and with dynamical models with pion cloud effects. These results confirm the dominance, and general Q² variation, of the pionic contribution at large distances.     

Hyperfine structure and isotope shifts in near-infrared transitions of atomic nitrogen

We have obtained Doppler-free spectra of transitions in the → 2p²(³P) and → multiplets of atomic nitrogen using saturated absorption spectroscopy. These multiplets consist of respectively of seven and eight transitions, and have center of gravity wavelengths of 821 nm and 869 nm. Values for the hyperfine structure coupling constants of all the upper and lower states for these multiplets were obtained for both ¹⁴N and ¹⁵N. Isotope shifts of three transitions in each multiplet were also measured, and a significant J-dependence to the shifts was observed.     

New information on the T1/2 = 47 s isomer in the 136I nucleus

The ¹³⁶I nucleus, populated in the spontaneous fission of ²⁴⁸Cm, was studied by means of prompt γ-ray spectroscopy using the EUROGAM2 array. The observation in this work of the 42.6keV prompt-γ, M1 + E2 transition de-exciting the 7^- level in ¹³⁶I indicates that this level, interpreted as the configuration, does not correspond to the T = 47s, β-decaying isomer in ¹³⁶I. The isomer is placed 42.6keV below the 7^- level. It has spin 6^- and is interpreted as the configuration. This and other members of both multiplets can be reproduced properly only if one assumes that the πd_5/2 orbital in ¹³⁶I is located 400keV lower than in ¹³³Sb. Possible mechanisms causing this effect are discussed.     

Identification of \mathrm{\ensuremath J^{\pi} = 19/2^+} and \mathrm{\ensuremath 23/2^+} isomeric states in 127Sb

The nucleus $\ensuremath {\rm ^{127}Sb}$ , which is on the neutron-rich periphery of the $\ensuremath \beta$ -stability region, has been populated in complex nuclear reactions involving deep-inelastic and fusion-fission processes with $\ensuremath {\rm {}^{136}Xe}$ beams incident on thick targets. The previously known isomer at 2325 keV in $\ensuremath {\rm {}^{127}Sb}$ has been assigned spin and parity $\ensuremath 23/2^+$ , based on the measured $\ensuremath \gamma$ - $\ensuremath \gamma$ angular correlations and total internal conversion coefficients. The half-life has been determined to be 234(12) ns, somewhat longer than the value reported previously. The 2194 keV state has been assigned $\ensuremath J^{\pi} = 19/2^+$ and identified as an isomer with $\ensuremath T_{1/2} = 14(1) {\rm ns}$ , decaying by two $\ensuremath E2$ branches. The observed level energies and transition strengths are compared with the predictions of a shell model calculation. Two $\ensuremath 15/2^+$ states have been identified close in energy, and their properties are discussed in terms of mixing between vibrational and three-quasiparticle configurations.     

NLO contributions to <Emphasis Type="Italic">B</Emphasis>→<Emphasis Type="Italic">KK</Emphasis><Superscript>*</Superscript> decays in the pQCD approach

We calculate the important next-to-leading-order (NLO) contributions to the B→KK ^* decays from the vertex corrections, the quark loops, and the magnetic penguins in the perturbative QCD (pQCD) factorization approach. The pQCD predictions for the CP-averaged branching ratios are , , and Br(B ⁰→K ⁺ K ^*−+K ⁻ K ^*+)≈1.3×10⁻⁷, which agree well with both the experimental upper limits and the predictions based on the QCD factorization approach. Furthermore, the CP violating asymmetries of the considered decay modes are also evaluated. The NLO pQCD predictions for and decays are and .     

Test of the Pauli exclusion principle for nucleons and atomic electrons by accelerator mass spectrometry

The Pauli exclusion principle was tested by searching with accelerator mass spectrometry for non-Paulian atoms with three electrons in theK-shell and for non-Paulian nuclei with three protons or three neutrons in the nuclear 1 s_1/2 shell. For non-Paulian atoms of and the following limits have been obtained: and . For non-Paulian nuclei of and with three protons or three neutrons, respectively, in the nuclear 1 s_1/2 shell the following limits have been measured: for a range of proton separation energies of between 0 and 50 MeV and for neutron separation energies between 0 and 32 MeV. The result for⁵Li is used to deduce a limit for the probability ²/2 of finding two colliding protons in the symmetric state with respect to exchange to be ²/2<>^–32.Dedicated to Prof. Dr. P. Kienle on the occasion of his 60th birthday. Supported by the BMFT     

Role of Barrier Modification and Nuclear Structure Effects in Sub-Barrier Fusion Dynamics of Various Heavy Ion Fusion Reactions

The role of barrier modifications and the relevant nuclear structure effects in the fusion of the \( {}_8{}^{16}O+{}_{62}{}^{144,148,150,152,154}Sm \) and \( {}_3{}^{6,7}Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm \) systems is analyzed within the context of the energy-dependent Woods-Saxon potential model (EDWSP model) and the coupled channel model. For the \( {}_8{}^{16}O+{}_{62}{}^{144,148,150,152,154}Sm \) reactions, where the colliding pairs are stable against breakup, the collective excitations and/or static deformations are sufficient to account for the observed fusion enhancement. In contrast, the model calculations overpredict the complete fusion data at above - barrier energies for the \( {}_3{}^{6,7}Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm \) systems, where the importance of projectile breakup effects has been pointed out. Due to the low threshold of the alpha-breakup channel, the weakly bound projectiles \( \left({}_3{}^{6,7}Li\right) \) break up into charged fragments before reaching the fusion barrier and consequently the complete fusion cross section is suppressed by 28% (25%) in the \( {}_3{}^6Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\;\left({}_3{}^7Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\right) \) reaction with respect to predictions of coupled channel calculations. However, the EDWSP model based calculations can minimize the suppression factor by as much as of 13% (8%) in the \( {}_3{}^6Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\;\left({}_3{}^7Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\right) \) reaction with reference to the predictions made by the coupled channel calculations. Therefore, the complete fusion data of the \( {}_3{}^6Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\;\left({}_3{}^7Li+{}_{62}{}^{152}Sm\right) \) reaction at above - barrier energies is reduced by 15% (17%) with respect to the expectations of the EDWSP model. The extracted suppression factors for the studied reactions are due to the modifications of the barrier profile as a consequence of the energy - dependence in nucleus-nucleus potential, and thus greater barrier modifications occur for more weakly bound system, which in turn, confirms the breakup of projectile in the incoming channel.     

Flavour-independent h<Superscript>0</Superscript>A<Superscript>0</Superscript> search and two Higgs doublet model interpretation of neutral Higgs boson searches at LEP

Upper limits on the cross-section of the pair-production process , assuming 100 branching fraction to hadrons, are derived from a new search for the hadrons final state, independently of the hadronic flavour of the decay products. This study, combined with previously published searches for the neutral Higgs bosons h⁰ and A⁰, is used to constrain the Type II Two Higgs Doublet Model (2HDM(II)) with no CP violation in the Higgs sector and no additional non-Standard Model particles besides the five Higgs bosons. The analysis combines LEP1 and LEP2 data collected with the OPAL detector up to the highest available centre-of-mass energies. The searches are sensitive to the and decay modes of the Higgs bosons. A benchmark scan of the 2HDM(II) parameter space is performed. Large regions of the 2HDM(II) parameter space explored are excluded at the 95% CL in the ( and planes, using both direct neutral Higgs boson searches and indirect limits derived from Standard Model high precision measurements. The region GeV and GeV is excluded at 95 % CL, independently of and for selected values of which are representative of a complete -scan.Received: 28 July 2004, Revised: 4 January 2005, Published online: 3 March 2005     

Absolute E3 and M2 transition probabilities for the electromagnetic decay of the \mathrm{\ensuremath I^{\pi}=K^{\pi}=8^{-}} isomeric state in 132Ce

The decay of the $\ensuremath I^{\pi}=K^{\pi}=8^{-}$ isomeric state at 2340keV in ¹³²Ce has been investigated in the ¹²⁰Sn(¹⁶O, 4n)¹³²Ce reaction. The measurements were carried out in e - $ \gamma$ and $ \gamma$ - $ \gamma$ coincidence modes using an electron spectrometer coupled to the OSIRIS II gamma-ray array at the Heavy Ion Laboratory of the University of Warsaw. Experimentally obtained internal conversion coefficients for the $\ensuremath 8^{-} \rightarrow 6^{+}$ and $\ensuremath 8^{-} \rightarrow 5^{+}$ transitions allowed the multipolarities, mixing ratios, reduced transition probabilities and hindrance factors to be determined.     

A new analysis improving the evidence of a narrow peak in the invariant-mass distribution of the \Lambdap system observed in the \bar{{p}} annihilation at rest on 4He

The presence of a narrow peak in the $ \Lambda$ p invariant-mass distribution observed in the $ \bar{{p}}$ annihilation reaction at rest $\ensuremath \bar{p} {}^4\mathrm{He}\rightarrow p\pi^-p\pi^+\pi^-n X$ is discussed again through an analysis procedure which improves the ratio signal/background in comparison with the previous analysis. The peak is centred at 2223.2±3.2_stat±1.2_syst MeV and has a statistical significance of 4.7 $ \sigma$ , values compatible with those published previously. If interpreted as the result of the decay into $ \Lambda$ p of a $\ensuremath { }_{\bar{K}}{}^2\mathrm{H}$ bound system, the corresponding binding energy should be B = - 151.0±3.2_stat±1.2_syst MeV and the width $ \Gamma_{{FWHM}}^{}$ < 33.9±6.2 MeV. The production rate has a lower limit of 1.2 10^-4. Data on the $ \bar{{p}}$ annihilation reaction at rest $ \bar{{p}}$ ⁴He $ \rightarrow$ p $ \pi^{-}_{}$ p $ \pi^{-}_{}$ p _s X , analyzed for the first time, lead to a result in qualitative agreement with the previous one.     

Study of spin and decay-plane correlations of W bosons in the e + e$^-\rightarrow$ W + W- process at LEP

Data collected at LEP at centre-of-mass energies GeV are used to study correlations of the spin of W bosons using events. Spin correlations are favoured by data, and found to agree with the Standard Model predictions. In addition, correlations between the W-boson decay planes are studied in and events. Decay-plane correlations are measured to be consistent with the Standard Model predictions.Received: 26 October 2004, Revised: 15 January 2005, Published online: 3 March 2005     

Study of tau-pair production in photon-photon collisions at LEP and limits on the anomalous electromagnetic moments of the tau lepton

Tau-pair production in the process was studied using data collected by the DELPHI experiment at LEP2 during the years 1997 - 2000. The corresponding integrated luminosity is 650 pb^-1. The values of the cross-section obtained are found to be in agreement with QED predictions. Limits on the anomalous magnetic and electric dipole moments of the tau lepton are deduced.Received: 18 September 2003, Revised: 26 March 2004, Published online: 11 May 2004     

Muonic Anti-hydrogen {(\bar{\rm H}_{\mu}}) Formation in Low-energy Three-body Reactions

A few-body type computation is performed for a three-charge-particle collision with participation of a slow antiproton ${\bar{\rm{p}}}$ and a muonic muonium atom (true muonium), i.e. a bound state of two muons ${(\mu^{+}\mu^{-})}$ in its ground state. The total cross section of the following reaction ${\bar{\rm p}+(\mu^{+}\mu^{-}) \rightarrow \bar{\rm{H}}_{\mu} + \mu^{-}}$ , where muonic anti-hydrogen ${\bar{\rm{H}}_{\mu}=(\bar{\rm p}\mu^{+})}$ is a bound state of an antiproton and positive muon, is computed in the framework of a set of coupled two-component Faddeev-Hahn-type equation. A better known negative muon transfer low energy three-body reaction: ${{\rm t}^{+} + ({\rm d}^{+}\mu^{-})\rightarrow ({\rm t}^{+}\mu^{-}) + {\rm d}^{+}}$ is also computed as a test system. Here, t⁺ is triton and d⁺ is deuterium.