Damping of high-lying single-particle modes in heavy nuclei

The recent experimental and theoretical results on the damping of high-lying single-particle modes in heavy nuclei are reviewed. In one-nucleon transfer reactions these states manifest themselves as broad “resonance”-like structures superimposed on a large continuum. The advantages and the limitations of the transfer reaction approach will be presented using the results from neutron and proton pick-up and stripping reactions. The problem raised by the subtraction of the underlying background, the assumptions made to describe the reaction process and the method used to extract the strength distributions are presented. The existing empirical systematics is summarized for nuclei ranging from ⁹⁰Zr to ²⁰⁸Pb.The theoretical approaches used to explain the damping of the high-lying single-particle modes are based on the coupling between collective and single-particle degrees of freedom. In a first step the bare single-particle mode is spread over several doorway collective states due to the interaction with surface vibrations. In a second step the doorway states spread their strengths over many other degrees of freedom. These two steps of the damping mechanism are discussed in detail within the framework of the quasiparticle-phonon nuclear model. A large-scale comparison between the measured and calculated average energies, spreading widths and spectroscopic strengths of the high-lying single-particle (hole) states in heavy nuclei is presented. The systematic features of the damping (energy, angular momentum and isotopic dependence) are discussed. Recent advances of the experimental approaches, such as the γ-decay of the high-lying states or the use of heavy-ion transfer reactions at intermediate energies, are outlined.The detailed study of the damping mechanism of high-lying single-particle modes reveals new features and leads us to a new field in nuclear structure: “the spectroscopy of inner and outer subshells”.     

Neutron productions in the fragmentation of relativistic heavy nuclei and formation of a beam of high-energy neutrons

The production of quasimonoenergetic high-energy neutrons at zero angle (0°) in the spallation of relativistic heavy nuclei is discussed by considering the example of the interaction of lead nuclei with light target nuclei. It is shown that this process can be used to generate a beam of high-energy neutrons at existing heavy ion accelerators. At the same time, itmay lead to the appearance of a parasitic neutron beam because of the interaction of the heavy-ion beam used with beam line and experimental setup materials.     

Calculation of astrophysical reaction rate of 82Ge(n,γ)83Ge

The neutron capture reaction on a neutron-rich near closed-shell nucleus 82Ge may play an important role in the r-process following the fallout from nuclear statistical equilibrium in core-collapse supernovae.By carrying out a DWBA analysis for the experimental angular distribution of 82Ge(d, p)83Ge reaction we obtain the single particle spectroscopic factors, S2,5/2 and S0,1/2 for the ground and first excited states of 83Ge=82Ge(⊕)n, respectively. And then these spectroscopic factors are used to calculate the direct capture cross sections for the 82Ge(n, γ)83Ge reaction at energies of astrophysical interest. The optical potential for neutron scattering on unstable nucleus 82Ge is not known experimentally. We employed a real folding potential which was calculated by using the proper 82Ge density distribution and an effective nucleon-nucleon force DDM3Y.The neutron capture reactions on neutron-rich closed-shell nuclei are expected to be dominated by the direct capture to bound states. We will show that the direct capture rates on these nuclei are sensitive to the structure of the low-lying states.     

An upgrade of the SCANDAL setup for measurements of elastic neutron scattering at 175 MeV

The experimental setup SCANDAL, used for measurements of the differential cross section for elastic and inelastic neutron scattering, has recently been upgraded with larger CsI scintillating detectors to enable measurements at energies up to 175 MeV. Measurements on Fe, Bi and Si have been carried out using the quasi mono-energetic neutron beam at the The Svedberg Laboratory, and data is under analysis. The experimental setup can be used for measurements on a wide range of target nuclei, including C and O, which are important for dosimetry applications. SCANDAL can also run in proton mode, for measurements of the (n,p) reaction. This paper describes the new experimental setup, and reports on its properties, such as energy resolution.     

Neutron Halo Structure at the Limit of Stability Probed by Breakup Reactions

Atomic nuclei along the neutron drip line are investigated experimentally by breakup reactions of the rare isotope beams. Such exotic nuclei often show the neutron halo structure, which is the main focus of this paper. Characteristic features of the Coulomb and nuclear breakup at intermediate to high incident energies are described. Then, recent experimental results on halo nuclei, mainly on ³¹Ne, obtained at the new-generation RI-beam facility, RIBF (RI Beam factory) at RIKEN, are presented. Perspectives for the breakup experiments using the new facility SAMURAI at RIBF ara also discussed.     

Alpha Decay as a Probe of the Structure of Neutron-deficient Nuclei Around Z =82

In this contribution I would like to review briefly our recent studies on nuclear α formation probabilities in heavy nuclei and their indication on the underlying structure of the nuclei involved. In particular, I will show that the empirical α-formation probabilities, which can be extracted from experimental half-lives, exhibit a rather smooth function with changing proton or neutron numbers. This allows us to distinguish the role played by pairing collectivity in the clustering process. The sudden hindrance of the clustering of the nucleons around the N = 126 shell closure is due to the fact that the configuration space does not allow a proper manifestation of the pairing collectivity. The influence of the Z = 82 shell closure on the α formation properties will also be discussed. Moreover, we have evaluated the α-decay fine structure to excited 0+ states in Hg and Rn isotopes as well as the α-decay from the excited 0+ states in the mother nucleus. It is thus found that the α decay is sensitive to the mixture of configurations corresponding to different nuclear shapes.     

Hadron-nucleus bound states

A new type of nuclear spectroscopy to study hadron-nucleus bound states is described. The first successful experiment was to search for deeply bound π⁻ states in heavy nuclei using the ²⁰⁸Pb(d,³He) reaction at GSI, in which a narrow peak arising from the 2p π⁻ orbital coupled with the neutron-hole states was observed at 135 MeV excitation energy. An improved experiment has just been carried out to separately identify the 1s and 2p π⁻ states. These experiments provide important information on the local potential strength, from which the effective mass of π⁻ is deduced to be 20 MeV. This method will be extended to search for η and ω bound states as well as for K⁻ bound states. The advantage of the bound-state spectroscopy versus invariant mass spectroscopy is emphasized.     

Lifetime measurements of neutron-rich nuclei around 48Ca with the CLARA-PRISMA setup

The lifetimes of excited states in neutron-rich nuclei around the doubly-magic nucleus ⁴⁸Ca have been measured using a novel technique that combines the Recoil Distance Doppler Shift method 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. The experimental method will be discussed and the results for Ca nuclei will be compared with realistic simulations of the CLARA and PRISMA spectrometers.     

K − absorption in nuclei by two and three nucleons

It will be shown that the peaks in the (Λp) and (Λd) invariant mass distributions, observed in recent FINUDA experiments and claimed to be signals of deeply bound kaonic states, are naturally explained in terms of K ^? absorption by two or three nucleons leaving the rest of the original nuclei as spectator. For reactions on heavy nuclei, the subsequent interactions of the particles produced in the primary absorption process with the residual nucleus play an important role. Our analyses leads to the conclusion that at present there is no experimental evidence of deeply bound K ^? state in nuclei. Although the FINUDA experiments have been done for reasons which are not supported a posteriori, some new physics can be extracted from the data.     

Production and study of heavy neutron rich nuclei formed in multi-nucleon transfer reactions

A new setup is proposed to produce and investigate heavy neutron-rich nuclei located along the neutron closed shell N = 126. This “blank spot” of the nuclear map can be reached neither in fusion–fission reactions nor in fragmentation processes widely used nowadays for the production of exotic nuclei. The present limits of the upper part of the nuclear map are very close to stability while the unexplored area of heavy neutron-rich nuclides along the neutron closed shell N = 126 is extremely important for nuclear astrophysics investigations and, in particular, for the understanding of the r-process of astrophysical nucleosynthesis. A new way was recently proposed for the production of these nuclei via low-energy multi-nucleon transfer reactions. The estimated yields of neutron-rich nuclei are found to be rather high in such reactions and several tens of new nuclides can be produced, for example, in the near-barrier collision of 136Xe with 208Pb. This setup could definitely open a new opportunity in the studies at heavy-ion facilities and will have significant impact on future experiments.     

Reaction rate of 24Mg(p,γ)25Al

The proton-capture reaction on ²⁴Mg has been investigated in the bombarding energy range of E_p=0.2–1.7 MeV. Resonance properties (strengths, branching ratios and lifetimes) of low-energy resonances have been measured. From the experimental results, accurate proton partial widths, γ-ray partial widths and total widths (Γ_p, Γ_γ, and Γ) have been deduced. The present experimental information establishes the ²⁴Mg+p reaction rates over the temperature range T=0.02–2.0 GK with statistical uncertainties of 5% to 21%. Our recommended reaction rates deviate from previous estimates by 18% to 45%. Based on our results, we can rule out the recent suggestion that the total width of the E_R=223 keV resonance has a significant influence on the reaction rates. We also discuss several effects that might give rise to systematic uncertainties in the reaction rates. The astrophysical implications for hydrogen burning of ²⁴Mg at low stellar temperatures are presented.     

Isospin effect in photoproton reaction on heavy nuclei

The cross sections and energy distributions of photoprotons measured mainly with (e, e'p) reactions on heavy nuclei are summarized. Isospin effects in this reaction are discussed for the IAR and isospin splitting of GDR. These effects for the proton energy distributions are theoretically calculated with the simple shell model and the results show qualitative agreement with the experimental results. Detailed experimental results which can not be explained by the present theory are also discussed.     

兰州320kV高压平台低能核天体物理实验研究进展(英文)

在低温核天体物理环境下,如静态核稳定燃烧阶段的核反应都发生较低的能区,其伽莫夫窗口内的核反应截面非常小,这就需要加速器提供较强束流才能完成核反应截面的直接测量。最近在中国科学院近代物理的320 kV高压平台上建立了低能核天体物理实验室以及相应的研究平台。驱动该平台的是一个14.5 GHz的永磁铁型ECR离子源,它能够提供非常强的束流离子。对于质子和氦离子,离子源出口的最大流强可以达到100 eμA,在实验终端上可以获得大约30 eμA的流强。基于此强流加速器装置,我们建立了核天体物理实验测量装置,包括靶室以及带电粒子和伽玛射线探测器等设备。利用已知的核反应对探测器性能和实验方法进行了一系列测试。同时,展示了近年来取得的一些主要实验结果。最后,对该平台上开展工作的前景进行了展望,并指出基于该地面装置的低能核反应研究所积累的技术及经验对于我国锦屏深地核天体物理JUNA项目的重要意义。For the hydrostatic stable burning in stars, the Gamow window is well below the Coulomb barriers for the charged-particle-induced nuclear reaction involved. Such nuclear reaction occurs through the quantum-mechanics tunneling effect, and its cross section drops rapidly approaching the Gamow window. An accelerator which can provide intense beam current is thus required to directly measure the reactions at low energies. An experimental setup for low-energy nuclear astrophysics studies has been recently established at a 320 kV high-voltage platform of the Institute of Modern Physics (IMP), Lanzhou, China. The driver machine of this platform is a very strong ECR ion source employing all-permanent magnets, which can typically supply up to about 100 eμA proton, alpha and many other heavy ions, and ultimately about 30 eμA currents can be achieved at the experimental terminal. The experimental setup includes a target chamber, and the charged-particle and γ-ray HPGe detectors. This work describes the setup established, characteristics of detectors, methodologies, and test results of several reactions with known cross sections. Furthermore, some important results published are shown briefly. We believe that the experimental technologies developed and experiences accumulated at this above-ground platform will be extremely helpful for the Jinping Underground Nuclear Astrophysics laboratory (JUNA) project in China.     

Theoretical Researches on α-transfer Rates of Ground States in Medium and Heavy Nuclei

The α-transfer rates of ground states in medium and heavy nuclei are obtained analytically in a two-level pairing force model of j-j scheme.It is concluded that,like the pair transfer,there exist blocking effects from the single and nupaired nucleon in α-transfer reactions.This is agreed with the experimental facts.     

Structural evolution along iso-chains of nuclei

The advent of radioactive nuclear beams (RNBs) has led to a rapid growth in the study of exotic nuclei. Already a number of major discoveries have been made. Examples are halo nuclei, mapping the bounds of nuclear existence, assessing the fragility of magicity, producing special nuclei such as ¹⁰⁰Sn and ⁴⁸Ni, and measuring key reaction rates of astrophysic interest. The growth in this field in the next decade will be enormous. With advanced RNB facilities being planned or under construction, more and more exotic nuclei will become accessible. One of the most interesting opportunities will be the study of the evolution of nuclear structure along extended iso-chains of nuclei. A prime example is Ni, where four magic numbers (20, 28, 40, and 50) and five major shells will be accessible. Structural evolution will be discussed from several standpoints, both theoretical and experimental, with emphasis on methods to obtain a maximum of information on new nuclei from the sparse data that will be available at the extremes of accessible N/Z ratios.     

Magnetic moments of mirror nuclei with tilted-foil polarization

We report here on an ongoing experimental program initiated at the ISOLDE facility at CERN for the measurement of magnetic moments of short-lived radionuclides, with the emphasis on magnetic moments of mirror nuclei in far-from-stability regions. The nuclei are polarized by the tilted foil technique and the resulting 0–180^○ βasymmetry is monitored as a function of rf frequency applied in an NMR setup. In order to achieve sufficiently high energy for transmission through the foils, the experimental setup is mounted on a high voltage platform. The first experiment in this program was the measurement of the βasymmetry and the NMR resonance for the ground state of ²³Mg (I=3/2, T_1/2=11.3 s), yielding μ=−0.533(6) nm. Improvements to the experimental setup are presently being designed, to be used in conjunction with the new developments at ISOLDE for obtaining high charge-state ions from the EBIS (REX-ISOLDE) ion source. This will help pave the way for measurements of magnetic moments of T=3/2 nuclei in the s–d shell and of T=1/2 f-shell nuclei. The study of relaxation times and other solid-state phenomena in semiconductors and other materials of interest using this technique is also contemplated. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Gamma spectroscopy of neutron-rich nuclei with the CLARA-PRISMA setup

The CLARA-PRISMA experimental set-up combines the large acceptance magnetic spectrometer for heavy ions PRISMA with the highly efficient CLARA array of 25 Clover detectors. Selected results on the structure of neutron-rich nuclei, populated in multinucleon transfer and deep-inelastic reactions, are presented here. Some technical developments of the setup are also discussed.     

136Xe+198Pt多核子转移反应机制的理论研究

如何生成丰中子重核是目前原子核物理领域的热点问题之一,多核子转移反应是生成丰中子重核的一种可行途径.本工作采用时间相关的Hartree-Fock(TDHF)方法研究了136Xe+198Pt在Ec.m.=645 MeV的多核子转移反应.对动力学过程中的核子转移、能量耗散、形变核的朝向效应等进行了细致的分析,并结合统计衰变...     

Nova reaction rates and experiments

Oxygen-neon novae form a subset of classical novae events known to freshly synthesize nuclei up to mass number A?40. Because several gamma-ray emitters lie in this mass range, these novae are also interesting candidates for gamma-ray astronomy. The properties of excited states within those nuclei in this mass region play a critical role in determining the resonant (p,γ) reaction rates, themselves, largely unknown for the unstable nuclei. We describe herein a new Doppler shift lifetime facility at the Maier-Leibnitz tandem laboratory, Technische Universität München, with which we will map out important resonant (p,γ) nova reaction rates.     

A study of the (α, t) reaction on 19F, 27Al, 51V and 59Co

The angular distributions of tritons from the (α, t) reaction on ¹⁹F, ²⁷Al, ⁵¹V and ⁵⁹Co nuclei corresponding to the (0⁺) ground states and (2⁺) excited states in the final nuclei have been measured in the angular range between 15° and 170° at α-particle energies of 25 MeV. For reactions on ²⁷Al and ⁵¹V nuclei, the differential excitation functions have also been obtained at different angles of outgoing tritons at E_α from 20 to 25 MeV. The experimental angular distributions are analysed by the DWBA approximation on the assumption of a nucleon stripping mechanism. The analyses of the present results and the data obtained earlier for the (α, t) reaction on the 1 p shell nuclei, A ? 30, reveal that the distinguishing feature of the reaction under study is the presence of backward angle peaks in the reaction cross section, which appear to be associated with exchange processes. For the (α, t) reaction on the heavier nuclei (A > 30), the dominant mechanism is nucleon stripping.