Muon Motion Induced by a Superintense Laser in Muon‐Catalyzed Fusion

Considering the mixture after muon‐catalyzed fusion (μ CF) reaction as overdense plasma, we study muon motion in the plasma produced by a superintense linearly polarized femtosecond laser pulse. Muon drift along the propagation of laser radiation remains after the end of the laser pulse. At the peak laser intensity of 10²¹W/cm², muon goes from the skin layer into field‐free matter at short time which is much less than the pulse duration, before the laser pulse reaches its maximum. Besides, the influence of the laser on other particles in the plasma is less. Hence, this work can avoid muon sticking to alpha (α) effectively and reduce muon‐loss probability in μ CF. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

On dewetting dynamics of solid films of hydrogen isotopes and its influence on tritium ß spectroscopy

The dewetting dynamics of solid films of hydrogen isotopes, quench-condensed on a graphite substrate, was measured at various temperatures below desorption by observing the stray light from the film. A schematic model describing the dewetting process by surface diffusion is presented, which agrees qualitatively with our data. The activation energies of different hydrogen isotopes for surface diffusion were determined. The time constant for dewetting of a quench-condensed film at the working temperature of 1.86 K of the mainz neutrino mass experiment was extrapolated. Received 30 December 1999     

Resonances and near-threshold scattering in 3,4Hedμ

Elastic and inelastic scattering cross-sections in the ^3,4Hedμ systems near the dμ threshold are calculated. The isotopic effect and strong energy dependence in ⁴Hedμ are found. The reason for these peculiarities is the near-threshold pole of the ⁴Hedμ scattering amplitude. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Muon transfer from ground state deuterium to helium nuclei and its temperature dependence

The energy and time distributions of the decay X-rays of excited, metastable, molecular (dμHe)*-resonances were measured. The comparison of the observed energy spectra with calculated ones suggests that decay from the rotational state J = 1 dominates at the investigated conditions. The muon transfer rates from ground state deuterium to the helium isotopes ³He and ⁴He at low temperatures were determined from the time distributions of these spectra. Additionally, the temperature dependence of the muon transfer rate was clearly established in deuterium / ⁴He mixtures. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Frictional cooling: Experimental results

The classical methods used in beam cooling are hard to be adapted for a beam of short-lived elementary particles. A novel method, the so-called frictional cooling – that is cooling a beam of low-energy charged particles by moderation in matter and acceleration in an electrostatic field – has been shown to be feasible. In our experiments performed in 1994/1995 a beam of short-lived particles was cooled for the first time ever. Utilizing frictional cooling on a beam of slow negative muons we observed increase in phase space density by about one order of magnitude. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Measuring the Michel parameter ξ'

Unlike the majority of Michel parameters which are consistent with the Standard Model V-A interaction, the experimental value of ξ″(=0.65±0.36) [1] is poorly known. Our experiment will measure the longitudinal polarization, P _L , of positrons emitted from the decay of polarized muons. The value of P _L , equal to unity in the Standard Model, will decrease for high energy positrons emitted antiparallel to the muon spin if the combination of Michel parameters ξ″/ξξ′ − 1 deviates from the Standard Model value of zero. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Resonant formation measurements of dt\mu via time of flight

Solid hydrogen in the form of an inhomogeneous layered target offers several experimental advantages when compared with liquid or gas. Beams of non-thermalized muonic hydrogen atoms allow us to explore resonant molecular ion formation processes near eV kinetic energies. Isotopically specific layers make it possible to separate competing and confusing interactions and to employ the time of flight for comparison with predictions based on theoretical energy dependences. Unambiguous charged fusion product detection simplifies absolute intensity measurements. The systematic uncertainties encountered in resonant molecular ion formation measurements, using solid hydrogen target layers, are being investigated with simulations which use the many calculated energy-dependent rates and cross-sections which are now available. The importance of the rates for processes such as muon transfer and elastic scattering are discussed, and results of some recent analyses are presented. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

High pressure μSR studies: rare earths and related materials

After a short introduction to μSR with respect to the study of magnetic properties, followed by a brief outline of the principle of the high pressure-low temperature μSR spectrometer installed at the Paul Scherrer Institute, we discuss some measurements on rare earth materials employing this instrument. They are concerned with: (1) The pressure dependence of the spin turning process in ferromagnetic Gd. (2) The volume dependence of the internal magnetic field in the heavy rare earth metals Gd, Dy, and Ho in their ordered magnetic states. (3) The response of the (first order) magnetic transition in the frustrated antiferromagnets of type RMn₂ (R = Y,Gd) to pressure. (4) The variation of magnetic parameters with pressure in La₂CuO₄ (powder sample), the antiferromagnetic parent compound of the high T_C superconductors of type La_2−x(Sr, Ba)_xCuO₄. In conclusion a short outlook on further developments is given. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Analysis of Forbush decreases observed using a muon telescope in Antarctica starting on 21 June 2015

A cosmic-ray muon telescope has been collecting data since the end of 2014, which was shortly after the telescope was built in the Zhongshan Station of Antarctica. The telescope is the first observation device to be built by Chinese scientists in Antarctica. The pressure change is very strong in Zhongshan station. The count rate of the pressure correction results shows that the large variations in the count rate are likely caused by pressure fluctuations. During the period from 18 June to 22 June 2015, four halo coronal mass ejections(CMEs) were ejected from the Sun. These CMEs initiated a series of Forbush decreases(FD) when they reached the Earth. We conducted a comprehensive study of the intensity fluctuations of galactic cosmic rays recorded during FDs. The intensity fluctuations used in this study were collected by cosmic ray detectors of multiple stations(Zhongshan, McMurdo,South Polar, and Nagoya), and the solar wind measurements were collected by ACE and WIND. The profile of the FD of 22 June demonstrated a four-step decrease. The traditional one-or two-step FD classification method does not adequately explain the FD profile results. The interaction between the faster CME that occurred on 21 June 2015 and the two slow CMEs of the earlier few days should be considered. The cosmic ray intensities of the South Pole,McMurdo, and Zhongshan stations have similar hourly variations, whereas the galactic cosmic rays recorded between polar and non-polar locations are distinct. The FD pre-increase of 22 June 2015 for the Nagoya muon telescope(non-polar location) lags those of the McMurdo and Zhongshan stations(polar locations) by 1 h. The FD onset of22 June 2015 for the Nagoya muon telescope lags those of the polar locations by 1 h.     

A multi-charged particle model with local U(1)μ-τ to explain muon g–2, flavor physics,and possible collider signature

We consider a model with multi-charged particles, including vector-like fermions, and a charged scalar under a local \begin{document}$ U(1)_{\mu - \tau} $\end{document} symmetry. We search for an allowed parameter region explaining muon anomalous magnetic moment (muon \begin{document}$ g-2 $\end{document}) and \begin{document}$ b \to s \ell^+ \ell^- $\end{document} anomalies, satisfying constraints from the lepton flavor violations, Z boson decays, meson anti-meson mixing, and collider experiments. Via numerical analysis, we explore the typical size of the muon \begin{document}$ g-2 $\end{document} and Wilson coefficients to explain the \begin{document}$ b \to s \ell^+ \ell^- $\end{document} anomalies in our model when all other experimental constraints are satisfied. Subsequently, we discuss the collider physics of the multicharged vectorlike fermions, considering a number of benchmark points in the allowed parameter space.