Direct extraction of the isovector deformation parameter β(1)2 from the (p,n) reaction of 56Fe

The reaction ⁵⁶Fe(p, n)⁵⁶Co leading to the analog of the ground state and the first excited 2⁺ state of ⁵⁶Fe has been studied at E_p=20, 28, 32 and35MeV. The direct process dominates at higher energies, thus the direct extraction of the isovector deformation parameter β⁽¹⁾₂ is feasible. It is found that β⁽¹⁾₂ is about three times larger than β⁽⁰⁾₂, the isoscalar deformation parameter.     

Local states of iron in iron implanted hematite Fe2O3

Powder samples of⁵⁷Fe₂O₃ and⁵⁶Fe₂O₃ were implanted with⁵⁶Fe and⁵⁷Fe ions, respectively. By the use of Conversion Electron Mössbauer Spectroscopy it was possible to observe the local states of implanted ions (⁵⁷Fe in⁵⁶Fe₂O₃) or the states of iron atoms from the target which were displaced during implantation due to the ballistic processes (⁵⁶Fe in⁵⁷Fe₂O₃). The implanted and displaced iron atoms appear in three different states: (i) in regular substitutional positions of Fe₂O₃, (ii) as magnetite Fe₃O₄-type structures and (iii) paramagnetic FeO_1?x state. The observed fractions of each state agree rather well with the calculated values obtained from the local iron atom enrichment at the surface as well as from the analysis of the equilibrium phase diagram for the binary Fe?O system. However, in⁵⁷Fe implanted samples some enhancement of the FeO_1?x fraction was found in comparison with the⁵⁶Fe implanted hematite.     

A study of the level properties of 57Co from the (τ, d) reaction on 56Fe

The ⁵⁶Fe(τ, d)⁵⁷Co reaction has been studied at E_τ = 18 MeV using the Tandem Van de Graaff accelerator and the multichannel magnetic spectrograph of the Nuclear Physics Laboratory, Oxford, Angular distributions have been measured for most of the levels up to E_x ≈ 7.8 MeV and are analysed in terms of the DWBA theory of direct reactions. The l_p values and the transition strengths compared with available theories.     

Energy levels,decay scheme, γ-ray branching ratios and lifetimes in 55Fe from the 55Mn(p,nγ)55Fe reaction

The reaction ⁵⁵Mn(p, nγ)⁵⁵Fe has been studied at E_p = 4.0 and 6.0 MeV using a pulsed beam. From the experiments at 6.0 MeV, the energy levels of ⁵⁵Fe up to an excitation of 3810 keV, their decay scheme and the γ-ray branching ratios have been determined. Levels have been identified for the first time in the (p, nγ) reaction. The results have been compared with those available from the literature. From the 4.0 MeV experiment, the mean lifetime of the 1408 keV level has been determined to be 142.7 ± 6.6 ps by direct timing techniques.     

Internal electron-positron pair production from electric monopole transitions

The yield curve of the reaction⁵⁶Fe(p,γ)⁵⁷Co has been measured over the energy rangeE _p =1,300–1,900 keV and the decay of nine resonances has been investigated. For twelve of the resonances the strengths have been determined. The angular distributions of the gamma rays have been recorded for resonances atE _p =1,599, 1,623, 1,643 and 1,649 keV, giving spin-parity assignmentsJ ^π=3/2^? for all four resonances. The resonances atE _p =1,623, 1,643 and 1,649 keV have been identified as the split analogue resonances of the 367 (J ^π=3/2^?) states in⁵⁷Fe. TheM1 transition strengths to the corresponding antianalogue states have been measured and compared with theoretical predictions.     

New determination of the magnetic moment of the54Fe(2 1 + ) state at 1.408 MeV

Relative to the wellknowng-factor of⁵⁶Fe(2 ₁ ⁺ ) at 0.847 MeV, theg-factor of the⁵⁴Fe(2 ₁ ⁺ ) state at 1.408 MeV has been remeasured employing the technique of transient magnetic fields (TF) with the ions slowed down in ferromagnetic Gd host at initial velocities of 2.5 ν₀. Coulomb excitation on beams of^54,56Fe was accomplished with a Si target. The value obtained,g=1.05(17), is in excellent agreement with two previous results but disagrees with the value from a TF measurement where the ions passed through ferromagnetic Fe.     

Transient magnetic fieldg-factor measurements of 2 1 + in64, 66, 68, 70Zn

The implantation perturbed angular correlation technique (IMPAC) has been used to determine the magnetic dipole moments of the first excited 2⁺ states in the stable even-even Zn-isotopes. Transient magnetic field measurements for⁵⁶Fe in ferromagnetic Gd at 77 K have been performed for recoil velocities up tov/v ₀～8. The result confirms the earlier reported linear velocity dependence. Theg-factors are deduced to be 0.46±0.10, 0.47±0.11, 0.46±0.14 and 0.30±0.07 for^{64, 66, 68}Zn and⁷⁰Zn respectively. The results are compared with theoretical predictions.     

The 56Fe(α, γ)60Ni reaction at excitation energies in the region of the giant dipole resonance

Excitation functions for the ⁵⁶Fe(α, γ₀)⁶⁰Ni and ⁵⁶Fe(α, γ₁)⁶⁰Ni reactions have been measured at 90° to the beam direction over the bombarding energy range 8.0–17.6 MeV. Gamma-ray angular distributions were measured at ten bombarding energies. Excitation functions for the ⁵⁹Co(p, γ₀)⁶⁰Ni and ⁵⁹Co(p, γ₁)⁶⁰Ni reactions were measured over the range E_x = 16.58–16.92 MeV and compared with the (α, γ) data. The angular distribution data indicate that the (α, γ₀) and (α,γ₁) reactions proceed through 1^?, and 1^? and 3^? states, respectively. The (α, γ) excitation functions are discussed with respect to isospin splitting of the ⁶⁰Ni giant dipole resonance. The fine structure observed in the excitation functions is shown to be most probably due to Ericson fluctuations. The gross (α, γ) cross sections are shown to be in reasonable agreement with the results of calculations made using the theory of Hauser and Feshbach assuming excitation of the giant dipole resonance.     

Thermal neutron induced charged particle reactions on58,59,61Ni

The thermal neutron induced charged particle spectroscopy on^{58, 59, 61}Ni (target nuclei) was done at the 87 m thermal neutron curved guide of the Grenoble high flux reactor. In the⁵⁹Nu(n, α)⁵⁶Fe reaction two lines showed up corresponding toα-particle transitions to the ground and first excited states in⁵⁶Fe with σ_α0=13.1±1.1 b and σ_α1 =0.188±0.01 b. A value of σ_γα≦13 mb was obtained for the two-step⁵⁹Ni(n, γα)⁵⁶Fe reaction. The technique to unfold theγα-spectrum and to get information on the primary low energyγ-rays is given and the present and our previous data on the¹⁴³Nd(n, γα)¹⁴⁰Ce reaction are analysed. For the⁵⁹Ni(n, p)⁵⁹Co reaction _p0=1.34±0.18b,σ _p1<0.30 b were determined. The cross-sections for the⁵⁸Ni(n,α)⁵⁵Fe and⁶¹Ni(n,α)⁵⁸Fe reactions were σ_α0≦30 Μb and σ_α0≦30 Μb respectively; these andσ _p1upper limit value are about 20–1500 times lower than the existing data. The other results are compared with the existing data and the differences are explained. The experimental data are compared with the values obtained from the statistical model.     

Scattering of polarized protons by iron and nickel isotopes

Elastic and inelastic scattering of polarized protons (E = 17.2, 20.4, 24.6 MeV) by ^{54, 56}Fe and ^{58, 60, 62} Ni have been investigated. Most data can be readily accommodated by standard optical-model and DWBA procedures, including full Thomas coupling. The 2⁺₁ state (1.41 MeV) in ⁵⁴Fe is peculiar because the inelastic scattering data require deformation parameters for the central and spin-orbit parts of the nuclear potential that differ by a factor 2 to 3; moreover, this anomaly shows a marked energy dependence.     

Mössbauer spectroscopical investigation of the exchange biased Fe/MnF2 interface

Two different Fe/MnF₂ samples have been prepared by e-beam evaporation on MgO(001) substrates. The Fe layer in the samples includes a 10 Å thick ⁵⁷Fe probe layer either at the Fe/MnF₂ interface (interface sample) or 35 Å away from the interface (center sample). The samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction, conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) and SQUID magnetometry. ⁵⁷Fe CEMS has been employed to study the depth dependent hyperfine interactions in Fe/MnF₂ as a function of temperature between 18 K to 300 K. The hyperfine field B _hf has been obtained for the interfacial and off-interfacial ⁵⁷Fe layers. At the interface, besides B _hf of bcc-Fe, the presence of a component with a distribution P(B _hf ) is observed. The latter is assigned to interfacial ⁵⁷Fe atoms, indicating some (～15%, equivalent to ～1 Fe atomic layer) intermixing at the Fe/MnF₂ interface and a decrease of the average hf > by 21%. The influence of the interface disappears as the ⁵⁷Fe probe layer is placed away from the interface. The temperature dependence of the average hf > of the interface has been measured. The Fe spins, at remanence, are found to lie in the film plane.     

Quasiparticle-phonon model calculations on doubly even Zn and Ge nuclei

The doubly even isotopes of Zn and Ge have been investigated in a model in which two quasiparticle excitations, constructed in a (0f _7/2), 1p _3/2, 0f _5/2, 1P _1/2, 0g _9/2 configuration space, are coupled with quadrupole vibrations of the core, viz.⁴⁰Ca or⁵⁶Ni. The 0f _7/2 orbit is excluded in case of a⁵⁶Ni core. The spectra, except for low-lying excited 0⁺ states, could be reproduced reasonably well. The calculatedE2 strengths and quadrupole moments are in fair agreement with experiment.     

The nucleus 60Fe from 58Fe(t,p)60Fe

The ⁵⁸Fe(t, p)⁶⁰Fe reaction has been studied at an incident energy of 15 MeV. Angular distributions have been measured for 29 states up to E_x = 5.2MeV. Comparison of the data with DWBA calculations, using pure configurations for the transfer amplitudes, has enabled the L-transfer (and hence J^π value) to be determined for all the states investigated. Twenty-three new J^π assignments have been made. The trend in the ground-state strength for the ^54,56,58Fe(t, p)^56,58,60Fe reactions has been reproduced, using a simple model in which the two-neutron transfer amplitudes are calculated in the quasiparticle limit. Finally the distribution of transition strength among the excited states of the three reactions is discussed.     

Surface sensitivity of low energy electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (LEEMS) using57Fe

Very low energy electrons (LEE) (E _e ≤15 eV) are produced with high intensity directly by Mössbauerabsorption and conversion in the case of⁵⁷Fe [1, 4, 5]. These electrons should be very surface sensitive due to their very low attenuation length compared to the 7.3 keV K-Conversion electrons of⁵⁷Fe [5, 11]. We have examined the surface sensitivity of these resonant LEE, using nonresonant⁵⁶Fe metal and⁵⁶Fe stainless steel foils coated with about 20 Å and 50 Å⁵⁷Fe, respectively. They were exposed to air after evaporation: The 20 Å samples are found to be fully oxidized [5]. Depth Selective Conversion Electron Mössbauer Spectroscopy (DCEMS), performed with a high transmission orange type magnetic spectrometer [5, 6, 13] reveals a two layer structure of the 50 Å samples. Low Energy Electron Mössbauer Spectroscopy (LEEMS) [5] is found to be significantly more surface sensitive than conventional DCEMS, but not as surface sensitive as Auger Electron Mössbauer Spectroscopy (AEMS) using LMM-Auger electrons of 500–600 eV, as expected due to the different mean free path. But because of the very low intensity of these Auger electrons this mode appears to be not very useful for practical application.     

A measurement of Kevγ+ decay

The decay K⁺ → e⁺vγ has been observed. In a counter experiment at CERN, 56 events of this type have been identified by detection of a γ with an energy > 100 MeV and of an e⁺ with an energy between 236 MeV and the maximum e⁺ energy, 247 MeV. The angle between γ and e⁺ was > 120°. Thus, the experiment was sensitive only to the structure decay (SD) term proportional to the squared sum of vector- and axialvector amplitudes, |ν_K + a_K|², corresponding to the emission of right handed γ. We find Δ₊(SD)/Δ(K_e2) = 1.05_?0.30^+0.25 and Δ_(SD) < 85 (90% CL). Δ₊ is in agreement with theoretical predictions.     

Diffusion and correlation effects in iron-doped CoO

The diffusion of ⁵⁹Fe and ⁶⁰Co has been measured in pure CoO and dilute iron-doped CoO, (Co_1?cFe_cO, as a function of temperature (1000–1400°C) and oxygen partial pressure P_{o2), (10^?7 ≦ Po2 ≦ 0 21 atm) The enhancement factors for the diffusivities of iron and cobalt are nearly identical, which suggests that the primary cause of the enhancement is the increased concentration of charge-compensating cation vacancies with the addition of iron. The Fe ions dissolved in CoO appear to exist as a mixture of Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions, the fraction of iron ions in the three-plus state decreases with decreasing Po2 The simultaneous diffusion of ⁵²Fe and ⁵⁹Fe has been measured as a function of (itpo; at 1200°C The correlation factor for Fe impurity diffusion determined from the isotope-effect measurements is about the same as that for self-diffusion in CoO at high (itPo2} (2 × 10^?3 ≦ p_o2 ≦ 0 21 atm), but increases slightly with decreasing p_O2 Both the enhancement-effect and isotope-effect experiments suggest that the nearestneighbor interactions between Fe ions and vacancies is small, and that the dissolved Fe ions do not have strongly bound electron holes.     

Morin transition suppression in Polycrystalline 57Hematite (α-Fe2O3) exposed to 56Fe(II)

We used the isotope selectivity of ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy to investigate changes in the magnetic properties of polycrystalline hematite exposed to ferrous iron (Fe(II)). We found that sorption of ⁵⁶Fe(II), followed by interfacial electron exchange, alters the bulk magnetic properties of ⁵⁷hematite. After reaction with ⁵⁶Fe(II), we observed partial suppression of the Morin transition of ⁵⁷hematite to below 13 K. This is significantly lower than the Morin temperature (T _M) of ～230 K measured for isotopically enriched polycrystalline ⁵⁷hematite, as well as the T _M of 264?±?2 K reported for normal polycrystalline hematite.     

Kernspektroskopische Untersuchungen zu den Termschemata der Kerne56Fe und56Co

Gamma-gamma directional correlations have been investigated for several cascades in⁵⁶Fe formed in the decay of⁵⁶Mn or⁵⁶Co. A combination of NaI(Tl) and Ge(Li) detectors was used for the experiments. It was established that a level at 3601 keV is populated in the decay of⁵⁶Co. Spins given in the paranthesis were assigned to levels at the following energies: 2658(2), 2960(2), 3123(4), 3370(2), 3445(3), 3601(2), 3856(3), 4049(3), 4100(4), 4120(3), 4298(4), 4395(3) and 4459 keV (3,4). Multipole mixing ratios were determined forγ transitions of the following energies: 978, 1038, 1175, 1360, 1772, 1811, 1964, 2015, 2035, 2113, 2213, 2523, 2599, 3010, 3202, 3254, 3273, 3451 and 3548 keV. Theγ-rays from the decay of⁵⁶Co of energies 674.7 and 2657.4 keV have been observed for the first time, and the presence of several other weakγ-rays in the⁵⁶Fe decay has been confirmed. Nine angular correlations in the decay of⁵⁶Ni have been investigated. The spin sequence 4, 3, 2, 0, 1 was unambiguously determined for the levels at 0, 158.2, 970.1, 1450.7 and 1720.0 keV. The multipolarity of theγ-rays of energies 158.2, 749.9 and 811.9 keV was determined as almost pure M1. The results are discussed within the framework of recent shell model calculations.     

Iron as a Detector for Neutrinos from Collapsing Stars

The interaction of the flux of electron neutrinos arising owing to the effect of the rotationalcollapse mechanism at the first stage of supernova burst with LSD components, such as ⁵⁶Fe (a large amount of this metal is contained in LSD as a shielding material) and С _n H_2n+2 liquid scintillator, is investigated. Both charged and neutral channels of neutrino interaction with ¹²С and ⁵⁶Fe are considered. Experimental data that make it possible to extract information necessary for calculating nuclear matrix elements appearing in the expression for the interaction cross section are used. The number of signals generated in LSD by the neutrino pulse from the Supernova 1987A is determined. The results of this study are in good agreement with experimental data.     

Dynamics of photoprocesses induced by femtosecond infrared radiation in free molecules and clusters of iron pentacarbonyl

The dynamics of photoprocesses induced by femtosecond infrared radiation in free Fe(CO)₅ molecules and their clusters owing to the resonant excitation of vibrations of CO bonds in the 5-μm range has been studied. The technique of infrared excitation and photoionization probing (λ = 400 nm) by femtosecond pulses has been used in combination with time-of-flight mass spectrometry. It has been found that an infrared pulse selectively excites vibrations of CO bonds in free molecules, which results in a decrease in the yield of the Fe(CO)₅⁺ molecular ion. Subsequent relaxation processes have been analyzed and the results have been interpreted. The time of the energy transfer from excited vibrations to other vibrations of the molecule owing to intramolecular relaxation has been measured. The dynamics of dissociation of [Fe(CO)₅]_n clusters irradiated by femtosecond infrared radiation has been studied. The time dependence of the yield of free molecules has been measured under different infrared laser excitation conditions. We have proposed a model that well describes the results of the experiment and makes it possible, in particular, to calculate the profile of variation of the temperature of clusters within the “evaporation ensemble” concept. The intramolecular and intracluster vibrational relaxation rates in [Fe(CO)₅]_n clusters have been estimated.