Mass Measurements of Exotic Nuclei around N=Z=40 with CSS2

Mass measurements of the N=Z nuclei ⁸⁰Zr, ⁷⁶Sr, ⁶⁸Se were performed for the first time and a new measurement was obtained for ⁸⁰Y, using the second cyclotron CSS2 of GANIL as a high-resolution spectrometer. Ions around N=Z were produced by fusion-evaporation in the inverse ⁵⁸Ni (4.32MeVA) + ²⁴Mg and ¹²C reactions. New masses were measured by a time-of-flight method, with a precision of 2⋅10⁻⁶, by using well-known masses as references. Study of the double binding energy difference δV _np is then performed leading to a strong N=Z Wigner effect around N=Z=40. Knowledge of new masses in this region also plays a crucial role in the modelling of the astrophysical rp process. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Shape Coexistence and the N=28 Shell Closure Far from Stability

A mass measurement experiment by a time of flight method with the SPEG spectrometer at GANIL has been performed to investigate the N=20 and N=28 shell closures far from stability. The masses of 31 neutron-rich nuclei in the range A=29–47 have been measured. The precision of 19 masses has been significantly improved and 12 masses were measured for the first time. The neutron-rich Cl, S and P isotopes are seen to exhibit a change in shell structure around N=28. Comparison with shell model and relativistic mean field calculations demonstrate that the observed effects arise from deformed prolate ground state configurations associated with shape coexistence. The evidence of an isomeric state in the ⁴³S and its interpretation by a shell model calculation confirm the analysis of the masses and constitutes the first evidence of the predicted shape coexistence around N=28. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Improvement of the Applicability, Efficiency, andPrecision of the Penning Trap Mass Spectrometer ISOLTRAP

With the Penning trap mass spectrometer ISOLTRAP, close to 200 nuclides have already been investigated and their masses determined with a typical relative precision of δm/m=10⁻⁷. Recently, ISOLTRAP's beam preparation system was replaced by an RFQ ion beam cooler and buncher. The principle and the characteristics of this new beam preparation system will be presented. It is planned to use ions of various carbon clusters C⁺ _n (n>1) as reference ions for mass measurements. Apart from negligible molecular binding energies, these clusters have masses that are exact multiples of the unified atomic mass unit. This will allow ISOLTRAP to carry out absolute mass measurements as well as to investigate possible mass-dependent systematic errors. The results of tests of the production, transport, and trapping of such carbon clusters will be presented. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Mass measurements in the endpoint region of the rp-process at SHIPTRAP

The Penning-trap mass spectrometer SHIPTRAP was designed for precision mass measurements of radionuclides produced in fusion–evaporation reactions. The latest measurement campaign covered heavy nuclei (A>90) related to the astrophysical rapid proton capture process. The masses of 34 neutron-deficient radionuclides have been measured since February 2006 with relative uncertainties between 5×10⁻⁸ and 1×10⁻⁷. Furthermore, the use of an octupolar RF excitation for the time-of-flight ion-cyclotron-resonance technique was investigated and an increase of the resolving power by a factor of ten was observed in agreement with simulations. This will allow to resolve isomeric states with excitation energies of a few 10 keV only.      

Theψ-particles in an SU4 scheme with anomalous currents

The recently discovered narrow peaks (theψ-particles) in e⁺e⁻ system at 3.105 and 3.695 GeV are interpreted as hadrons in a broken SU₄ symmetry scheme. A new additional additive quantum number, parachargeZ, is combined with the usual SU₃ quantum numbers in the group SU₄. Theψ (3.1) is assigned to a near ideally mixed15⊕1 multiplet of vector mesons (containing theρ) as theI=Y=0, charge conjugationC=−combination ofZ=±1.members. Theψ (3.7) is assigned correspondingly to another mixed15⊕1 multiplet containing theρ′ (1600). The hadronic electromagnetic interactions are modified by the addition of (non-minimal) anomalous pieces that can changeZ. The decays of theψ-particles are discussed. New enlarged SU₄ multiplets of other hadrons are proposed. Tests of our scheme are put forward. The most crucial test will be the observation of two rather broad resonances in e⁺ e⁻ collisions with masses around 4.2 GeV and 5.1 GeV. Another prediction is the presence of energetic photons in the decays of theψ-particles. Important results concerning the recently observed phenomena in the process e⁺e⁻→hadrons follow in this scheme.     

Integral energy spectrum of primary cosmic rays at high energies

The integral energy spectrum of primary cosmic rays has been obtained. In the energy range (2.4×10³−1.1×10⁵ GeV), the spectrum of all nuclei is consistent with a power law of indexγ=1.55±0.06 and the flux of all nuclei is:N(⩾E ₀)⋍(5.1±1.8)×10⁻¹×E ₀ ^−1.55 particles/cm² sterad. sec., whereE ₀ is in GeV. The spectrum of primaryα-particles in the energy range (4.4×10³−4.8×10⁴) GeV is also consistent with a power law of indexγ=1.71±0.12 and the flux is:N(⩾E ₀)=(4.2±1.4)×10⁻¹×E ₀ ^−1.71 , particles per cm² sterad. sec, whereE ₀ is in GeV.     

Level structures of 95,97Mo — A comparative study

High-spin states of ^95,97Mo (Z=42, N=53,55) nuclei have been investigated through ⁸²Se(¹⁸O, xn) reaction at Eb=60 MeV. The level scheme in ⁹⁵Mo has been observed upto ≏ 10 MeV in the present experiment. The level structure shows mainly single particle character. In ⁹⁷Mo, the ground state level sequence has been extended to ≏ 4.5 MeV while the previous information had been up to 2.4 MeV. A negative parity band built on 1437 keV (11/2⁻) excited state has been extended to 5.5 MeV. The structure seems to show a coexistence of single particle and collective modes of excitation. Properties of both the nuclei have been compared with shell model calculations using OXBASH.     

Schottky Mass Measurements of Cooled Exotic Nuclei

Projectile fragments of a ²⁰⁹Bi beam were separated in flight with the fragment separator FRS and injected into the experimental storage ring ESR. In the ESR a beam containing up to about 100 different isotopes was cooled to a relative velocity spread of δv/v=10⁻⁶ by means of the electron cooler. The image currents of the ions induced in a Schottky pick-up probe at each turn were recorded. A subsequent Fast Fourier Transformation of these signals yields the revolution frequencies of the different isotopes stored in the ESR. Unknown masses of more than 150 neutron-deficient nuclides in the element range of 52≤Z≤85 have been measured directly by Schottky Mass Spectrometry and in addition more than 60 new masses have been obtained from α-decay chains. These new mass data allow the location of the one-proton dripline and the prediction of the two-proton dripline for heavy nuclides. The experimental masses are compared with different theoretical predictions. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Improved (1s)<Superscript>2</Superscript> variational model for helium

The ground-state energy of neutral helium is estimated variationally with a trial wavefunction of the form ϕ≈e ^−γ(rA/a _o)ⁿe^−γ(rB/a _o)ⁿ. This model represents a modification of traditional textbook examinations of this problem via inclusion of the power “n” as a second nonlinear variational parameter in addition to the usual effective nuclear charge γ and leads to an upper-limit on the ground state energy of −2.86107 E _h (E _h =1 hartree) in comparison with the traditional (n=1) result of −2.84766 E _h . This result represents a reduction of the percentage overestimate from the true ground-state energy (−2.90373 E _h ) of from 1.93 to 1.47. In comparison with the maximum accuracy obtainable from an uncorrelated trial wavefunction, −2.86168 E _h , the present trial wavefunction reduces the percentage overestimate from 0.49 (n=1) to 0.021. The optimum values of (n, γ) are determined to be ≈(0.897, 1.825).     

Spectroscopic properties of Nd<Superscript>3+</Superscript>:CaNb<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>6</Subscript> crystal

The absorption spectra, fluorescence spectrum and fluorescence decay curve of Nd³⁺ ions in CaNb₂O₆ crystal were measured at room temperature. The peak absorption cross section was calculated to be 6.202×10⁻²⁰ cm² with a broad FWHM of 7 nm at 808 nm for E//a light polarization. The spectroscopic parameters of Nd³⁺ ions in CaNb₂O₆ crystal have been investigated based on Judd-Ofelt theory. The parameters of the line strengths Ω _t are Ω ₂=5.321×10⁻²⁰ cm²,Ω ₄=1.734×10⁻²⁰ cm²,Ω ₆=2.889×10⁻²⁰ cm². The radiative lifetime, the fluorescence lifetime and the quantum efficiency are 167 μs, 152 μs and 91%, respectively. The fluorescence branch ratios are calculated to be β ₁=36.03%,β ₂=52.29%,β ₃=11.15%,β ₄=0.533%. The emission cross section at 1062 nm is 9.87×10⁻²⁰ cm².     

First absolute mass measurements of short-lived isotopes

Absolute mass measurements of short-lived isotopes have been performed at the on-line mass separator ISOLDE at CERN by determining the cyclotron frequencies of ions confined in a Penning trap. The cyclotron frequencies for^{77,78,85,86,88}Rb and⁸⁸Sr ions could be determined with a resolving power of 3×10⁵ and an accuracy of better than 10⁻⁶, which corresponds to 100 keV for massA=100. The shortest-lived isotope under investigation was⁷⁷Rb with a half-life of 3.7 min. The resonances obtained for the isobars⁸⁸Rb and⁸⁸Sr were clearly resolved.     

Mass measurements of relativistic projectile fragments in the storage ring ESR

Two experimental methods of measuring masses of exotic nuclei in the storage ring ESR are presented. Bismuth and nickel fragments were produced via projectile fragmentation, separated and investigated with the combination of the fragment separator FRS and the ESR: (i) Direct mass measurements of relativistic projectile fragments were performed using Schottky mass spectrometry (SMS), i.e., exotic nuclei were stored and cooled in the ESR. Applying electron cooling, the relative velocity spread of circulating low intensity beams can be reduced below 10⁻⁶. Under this condition a mass resolving power of up to m/Δm=6.5·10⁵ (FWHM) was achieved in a recent measurement. Previously unknown masses of more than 100 neutron-deficient isotopes have been measured in the range of 60≤Z≤84. Using known Q _α values the area of known masses could be extended to more exotic nuclei and to higher proton numbers. The results are compared with mass models and extrapolations of experimental values. In a second experiment with ²⁰⁹Bi projectiles the area of the measured masses was extended to lower proton numbers. Due to various improvements at the ESR the precision of the measurements could be raised. (ii) Exotic nuclei with half-lives shorter than the time needed for SMS (present limit: T _1/2 ≈ 5 sec) can be investigated by time-of-flight measurements whereby the ESR is operated in the isochronous mode. This novel experimental technique has been successfully applied in first measurements with nickel and neon fragments where a mass resolving power of m/Δm=1.5·10⁵ (FWHM) was achieved.     

Standard-Model Tests with Superallowed β-Decay: An Important Application of Very Precise Mass Measurements

Superallowed β-decay provides a sensitive means for probing the limitations of the Electroweak Standard Model. To date, the strengths (ft-values) of superallowed 0⁺→0⁺ β-decay transitions have been determined with high precision from nine different short-lived nuclei, ranging from ¹⁰C to ⁵⁴Co. Each result leads to an independent measure for the vector coupling constant G _V and collectively the nine values can be used to test the conservation of the weak vector current (CVC). Within current uncertainties, the results support CVC to better than a few parts in 10,000 - a clear success for the Standard Model! However, when the average value of G _V, as determined in this way, is combined with data from decays of the muon and kaon to test another prediction of the Standard Model, the result is much more provocative. A test of the unitarity of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix fails by more than two standard deviations. This result can be made more definitive by experiments that require extremely precise mass measurements, in some cases on very short-lived (≤100 ms) nuclei. This talk presents the current status and future prospects for these Standard-Model tests, emphasizing the role of precise mass, or mass-difference measurements. There remains a real challenge to mass-measurement technique with the opportunity for significant new results. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Q value related mass determinations using a Penning trap

We report here about measurements of reaction and decay Q values by precise determination of pairs of atomic masses. These were performed with the Penning trap mass spectrometer SMILETRAP. Measurements with Penning traps give reliable and accurate masses, in particular Q values, due to the fact that certain systematic errors to a great deal cancel in the mass difference between the two atoms defining the Q value. Some Q values that are of fundamental interest will be discussed here, for example, a new Q value for the ⁶Li (n,γ) ⁷Li reaction, for the β-decay of tritium, related to properties of the electron neutrino mass, and for the neutrino-less double β-decay of ⁷⁶Ge, related to the question of whether the neutrino is a Majorana particle or not. In case of the latter two we report the most accurate Q values, namely 18,589.8(12) eV for the tritium decay and 2,038.997(46) keV for the neutrino-less double β-decay of ⁷⁶Ge.     

A Highly Sensitive and Selective Fluorescent Chemodosimeter for Hg<Superscript>2+</Superscript> in Neutral Aqueous Solution

A fluorescent assay of Hg²⁺ in neutral aqueous solution was developed using N-[p-(dimethylamino)benzamido]-N′-phenylthiourea (1). 1’s fluorogenic chemodosimetric behaviors towards various metal ions were studied and a high sensitivity as well as selectivity was achieved for Hg²⁺. It was because of a strongly fluorescent 1,3,4-oxadiazoles which was produced by the Hg²⁺ promoted desulfurization reaction. The spectra of ESI mass and IR provided evidences for this reaction. According to fluorescence titration, a good linear relationship ranging from 1.0 × 10⁻⁷ to 2.0 × 10⁻⁵ mol l⁻¹ was obtained with the limit of detection as 3.1 × 10⁻⁸ mol l⁻¹. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

A Mathematical Theory for Vibrational Levels Associated with Hydrogen Bonds I: The Symmetric Case

We propose an alternative to the usual time–independentBorn–Oppenheimer approximation that is specifically designed todescribe molecules with symmetrical Hydrogen bonds. In our approach,the masses of the Hydrogen nuclei are scaled differently from thoseof the heavier nuclei, and we employ a specialized form for theelectron energy level surface. Consequently, anharmonic effects playa role in the leading order calculations of vibrational levels. Although we develop a general theory, our analysis is motivated byan examination of symmetric bihalide ions, such as FHF ⁻ orClHCl ⁻. We describe our approach for the FHF ⁻ ion in detail. Partially Supported by National Science Foundation Grants DMS–0303586 andDMS–0600944.     

Characterization of energy levels in the nucleus170Lu

Configuration assignments are derived for the observed energy levels in the odd-odd deformed nucleus¹⁷⁰Lu₉₉ based on the calculations of the two-particle band head energies for a zero range residual interaction, the beta-feeding characteristics, and the observed features for similar bands in the neighbouring nuclei. In particular, specific assignments are given for theJ ^π =1⁺ levels at 198.4 keV, 349.0 keV and 785.5 keV. The ambiguities with respect to the assignments for theK ^π=3⁻ bands are discussed. A new isomer withJ ^π =7⁺ and half-life of several seconds is predicted around (225±25) keV and experiments are suggested to identify it.     

Metal-insulator transition in electron-doped Ba1−x La x MnO3 compounds

Electron-doped (Ba_1−x La _x )MnO₃ compounds were prepared for x=0−0.5. Measurements of X-ray diffraction (XRD) at room temperature and temperature variation of dc electrical resistivity down to 20 K were carried out. Samples with x=0.2–0.5 exhibit metal-insulator (M-I) transition. The maximum M-I transition temperature (T _c) of 289 K was observed for 30% of La doping (x=0.3). XRD patterns of these samples (x=0.2−0.5) were analyzed using Rietveld refinement. These samples are found to be mostly in single-phase form with orthorhombic symmetry (space group Pbnm). We have found strong correlation between Mn-O-Mn bond angles and T _c of M-I transition. The resistivity data below T _c could be fitted to the expression ρ=ρ ₁+ρ ₂ T ² and this shows that double exchange interaction plays a major role even in Mn⁴⁺-rich compound. Above T _c the resistivity data were fitted to variable range hopping and small polaron models.     

The collective bands of positive parity states in odd-A (fp) shell nuclei

The low-lying collective bands of positive parity states in (fp) shell nuclei are described in the deformed Hartree-Fock method by projecting states of definite angular momenta from ‘the lowest energy intrinsic states in (sd)⁻¹ (fp) ⁿ⁺¹ configurations. The modified Kuo-Brown effective interaction for (fp) shell and modified surface delta interaction (MSDI) for a hole in (sd) shell with a particle in (fp) shell have been used. The collective bands of states are in general well reproduced by the effective interactions. The excitation energies of the band head states are however off by about one MeV. The calculated magnetic moments of the band headj=3/2⁺ states are in reasonable agreement with experiment. Using effective chargese _p=1.33e ande _n=0.64e we get fairly good agreement forE(2) transitions. The hinderedM(1) transition strengths are reproduced to the correct order however they are slightly higher compared to experiment.     

Weak Interaction Studies Using a Paul Trap

New developments in ion cooling and ion bunching allow the trapping of radioactive ions from a low energy beam, in a very short time scale and with very good efficiency. The performances of Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) coolers, recently developed in several laboratories in Europe and USA, are now better known. In the present study, a RFQ device will be used to inject ⁶He⁺ ions in a transparent Paul trap. The ion beam will be delivered by the SPIRAL facility at GANIL. The careful measurement of the β-recoil ion coincidence spectrum is sensitive to the angular correlation parameter a, which depends on the coupling constants of the weak hamiltonian. It should be equal to −1/3 if the interaction is only of axial vector type (V-A theory). Deviation from this value would imply a new tensor-like interaction involving a new exchange boson thus introducing new physics beyond the Standard Model. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.