Density profiles and collective excitations of a trapped two component Fermi vapour

We discuss the ground state and the small-amplitude excitations of a degenerate vapour of fermionic atoms placed in two hyperfine states inside a spherical harmonic trap. An equations-of-motion approach is set up to discuss the hydrodynamic dissipation processes from the interactions between the two components of the fluid beyond mean-field theory and to emphasize analogies with spin dynamics and spin diffusion in a homogeneous Fermi liquid. The conditions for the establishment of a collisional regime via scattering against cold-atom impurities are analyzed. The equilibrium density profiles are then calculated for a two-component vapour of 40K atoms: they are little modified by the interactions for presently relevant values of the system parameters, but spatial separation of the two components will spontaneously arise as the number of atoms in the trap is increased. The eigenmodes of collective oscillation in both the total particle number density and the concentration density are evaluated analytically in the special case of a symmetric two-component vapour in the collisional regime. The dispersion relation of the surface modes for the total particle density reduces in this case to that of a one-component Fermi vapour, whereas the frequencies of all other modes are shifted by the interactions.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure

The high-lying 6^6Li levels at excitation energy around 21 MeV

The $^3$H+$^3$He cluster structure in $^6$Li was investigated by the $^3$H($\alpha$,$^3$H $^3$He)n kinematically complete experiment at the incident energy $E_\alpha$ = 67.2 MeV. We have observed two resonances at $E_x^*$ = 21.30 and 21.90 MeV which are consistent with the $^3$He($^3$H, $\gamma$)$^6$Li analysis in the Ajzenberg-Selove compilation. Our data are compared with the previous experimental data and the RGM and CSRGM calculations.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in J. Phys. Soc. Jp

Set up and application of an underwater Α-ray spectrometer for radioactivity measurements

The set up and control of an underwater measuring instrument for radioactivity pollution in the marine environment is described. The detection system is based on a NaI scintillator (RADAM III) with modifications for use in the marine environment with on-line measurements. The system is simple, has low power consumption and is stable for long-term monitoring (10 months). Before its deployment, the sensor was calibrated in the laboratory in a tank full of water to reproduce the marine environment. The calibrations were performed, by detecting the 661keV and 1461 keV gamma rays of known activity liquid sources 137 Cs and 40 K, respectively. The measured spectra in the laboratory were compared with spectra from a similar detector as acquired in the field. The analysis of the parallel measurement gave satisfactory agreement for the concentration of the potassium (40 K), as calculated from the salinity in the seawater, thus enabling the system for quantitative measurement of the seawater radioactivity

Neutron-induced fission cross section of 234 U measured at the CERN n_TOF facility

The neutron-induced fission cross section of 234U has been measured at the CERN n-TOF facility relative to the standard fission cross section of 235U from 20 keV to 1.4 MeV and of 238U from 1.4 to 200 MeV. A fast ionization chamber (FIC) was used as a fission fragment detector with a detection efficiency of no less than 97%. The high instantaneous flux and the low background characterizing the n-TOF facility resulted in wide-energy-range data (0.02 to 200 MeV), with high energy resolution, high statistics, and systematic uncertainties bellow 3%. Previous investigations around the energy of the fission threshold revealed structures attributed to β-vibrational levels, which have been confirmed by the present measurements. Theoretical calculations have been performed, employing the talys code with model parameters tuned to fairly reproduce the experimental data

Measurement of the240Pu(n,f) cross-section at the CERN n-TOF facility: First results from EAR-2

The accurate knowledge of neutron cross-sections of a variety of plutonium isotopes and other minor actinides, such as neptunium, americium and curium, is crucial for feasibility and performance studies of advanced nuclear systems (Generation-IV reactors, Accelerator Driven Systems). In this context, the240Pu(n,f) cross-section was measured with the time-of-flight technique at the CERN n-TOF facility at incident neutron energies ranging from thermal to several MeV. The present measurement is the first to have been performed at n-TOF's newly commissioned Experimental Area II (EAR-2), which is located at the end of an 18 m neutron beam-line and features a neutron fluence that is 25-30 times higher with respect to the existing 185 m flight-path (EAR-1), as well as stronger suppression of sample-induced backgrounds, due to the shorter times-of-flight involved. Preliminary results are presented. © 2015, CERN. All rights reserved.Postprint (published version

Ni-62(n,gamma) and Ni-63(n,gamma) cross sections measured at the n_TOF facility at CERN

The cross section of the Ni-62(n,gamma) reaction was measured with the time-of-flight technique at the neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN. Capture kernels of 42 resonances were analyzed up to 200 keV neutron energy and Maxwellian averaged cross sections (MACS) from kT = 5-100 keV were calculated. With a total uncertainty of 4.5%, the stellar cross section is in excellent agreement with the the KADoNiS compilation at kT = 30 keV, while being systematically lower up to a factor of 1.6 at higher stellar temperatures. The cross section of the Ni-63(n,gamma) reaction was measured for the first time at n_TOF. We determined unresolved cross sections from 10 to 270 keV with a systematic uncertainty of 17%. These results provide fundamental constraints on s-process production of heavier species, especially the production of Cu in massive stars, which serve as the dominant source of Cu in the solar system.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

New measurement of neutron capture resonances of 209Bi

The neutron capture cross section of Bi209 has been measured at the CERN n TOF facility by employing the pulse-height-weighting technique. Improvements over previous measurements are mainly because of an optimized detection system, which led to a practically negligible neutron sensitivity. Additional experimental sources of systematic error, such as the electronic threshold in the detectors, summing of gamma-rays, internal electron conversion, and the isomeric state in bismuth, have been taken into account. Gamma-ray absorption effects inside the sample have been corrected by employing a nonpolynomial weighting function. Because Bi209 is the last stable isotope in the reaction path of the stellar s-process, the Maxwellian averaged capture cross section is important for the recycling of the reaction flow by alpha-decays. In the relevant stellar range of thermal energies between kT=5 and 8 keV our new capture rate is about 16% higher than the presently accepted value used for nucleosynthesis calculations. At this low temperature an important part of the heavy Pb-Bi isotopes are supposed to be synthesized by the s-process in the He shells of low mass, thermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch stars. With the improved set of cross sections we obtain an s-process fraction of 19(3)% of the solar bismuth abundance, resulting in an r-process residual of 81(3)%. The present (n,gamma) cross-section measurement is also of relevance for the design of accelerator driven systems based on a liquid metal Pb/Bi spallation target.Comment: 10 pages, 5figures, recently published in Phys. Rev.

Measurement of the (90,91,92,93,94,96)Zr(n,gamma) and (139)La(n,gamma) cross sections at n_TOF

Open AccessNeutron capture cross sections of Zr and La isotopes have important implications in the field of nuclear astrophysics as well as in the nuclear technology. In particular the Zr isotopes play a key role for the determination of the neutron density in the He burning zone of the Red Giant star, while the (139)La is important to monitor the s-process abundances from Ba up to Ph. Zr is also largely used as structural materials of traditional and advanced nuclear reactors. The nuclear resonance parameters and the cross section of (90,91,92,93,94,96)Zr and (139)La have been measured at the n_TOF facility at CERN. Based on these data the capture resonance strength and the Maxwellian-averaged cross section were calculated

Measurement of the neutron capture cross section of the s-only isotope 204Pb from 1 eV to 440 keV

The neutron capture cross section of 204Pb has been measured at the CERN n_TOF installation with high resolution in the energy range from 1 eV to 440 keV. An R-matrix analysis of the resolved resonance region, between 1 eV and 100 keV, was carried out using the SAMMY code. In the interval between 100 keV and 440 keV we report the average capture cross section. The background in the entire neutron energy range could be reliably determined from the measurement of a 208Pb sample. Other systematic effects in this measurement could be investigated and precisely corrected by means of detailed Monte Carlo simulations. We obtain a Maxwellian average capture cross section for 204Pb at kT=30 keV of 79(3) mb, in agreement with previous experiments. However our cross section at kT=5 keV is about 35% larger than the values reported so far. The implications of the new cross section for the s-process abundance contributions in the Pb/Bi region are discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, article submitted to Phys. Rev.

Present Status and Future Programs of the n_TOF Experiment

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial License 3.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any noncommercial medium, provided the original work is properly citedThe neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN, Switzerland, operational since 2001, delivers neutrons using the Proton Synchrotron (PS) 20 GeV/c proton beam impinging on a lead spallation target. The facility combines a very high instantaneous neutron flux, an excellent time of flight resolution due to the distance between the experimental area and the production target (185 meters), a low intrinsic background and a wide range of neutron energies, from thermal to GeV neutrons. These characteristics provide a unique possibility to perform neutron-induced capture and fission cross-section measurements for applications in nuclear astrophysics and in nuclear reactor technology.The most relevant measurements performed up to now and foreseen for the future will be presented in this contribution. The overall efficiency of the experimental program and the range of possible measurements achievable with the construction of a second experimental area (EAR-2), vertically located 20 m on top of the n_TOF spallation target, might offer a substantial improvement in measurement sensitivities. A feasibility study of the possible realisation of the installation extension will be also presented