Three-body decay of 6^{6}Be

Three-body correlations for the ground-state decay of the lightest two-proton emitter $^{6}$Be are studied both theoretically and experimentally. Theoretical studies are performed in a three-body hyperspherical-harmonics cluster model. In the experimental studies, the ground state of $^{6}$Be was formed following the $\alpha$ decay of a $^{10}$C beam inelastically excited through interactions with Be and C targets. Excellent agreement between theory and experiment is obtained demonstrating the existence of complicated correlation patterns which can elucidate the structure of $^{6}$Be and, possibly, of the A=6 isobar.Comment: 17 pages, 21 figures, 5 table

Deep excursion beyond the proton dripline. I. Argon and chlorine isotope chains

The proton-unbound argon and chlorine isotopes have been studied by measuring trajectories of their decay-in-flight products by using a tracking technique with micro-strip detectors. The proton (1p) and two-proton (2p) emission processes have been detected in the measured angular correlations “heavy-fragment”+p and “heavy-fragment”+p+p, respectively. The ground states of the previously unknown isotopes 30Cl and 28Cl have been observed for the first time, providing the 1p separation energies Sp of −0.48(2) and −1.60(8) MeV, respectively. The relevant systematics of 1p and 2p separation energies have been studied theoretically in the core+p and core+p+p cluster models. The first-time observed excited states of 31Ar allow to infer the 2p-separation energy S2p of 6(34) keV for its ground state. The first-time observed state in 29Ar with S2p = −5.50(18) MeV can be identified either as a ground or an excited state according to different systematics.Helmholtz Association grant IK-RU-002Helmholtz International Center for FAIR HIC for FAIRRussian Science Foundation grant No. 17-12-01367Polish National Science Center Contract No. UMO- 2015/17/B/ST2/00581Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education Grant No. 0079/DIA/2014/43, Grant DiamentowyHelmholtz- CAS Joint Research Group grant HCJRG-10

Deep excursion beyond the proton dripline. II. Toward the limits of existence of nuclear structure

Prospects of experimental studies of argon and chlorine isotopes located far beyond the proton dripline are studied by using systematics and cluster models. The deviations from the widespread systematics observed in 28 , 29 Cl and 29 , 30 Ar have been theoretically substantiated, and analogous deviations have been predicted for the lighter chlorine and argon isotopes. The limits of nuclear structure existence are predicted for Ar and Cl isotopic chains, with 26 Ar and 25 Cl found to be the lightest sufficiently long-living nuclear systems. By simultaneous measurements of protons and γ rays following decays of such systems as well as their β -delayed emission, an interesting synergy effect may be achieved, which is demonstrated by the example of 30 Cl and 31 Ar ground-state studies. Such a synergy effect may be provided by the new EXPERT setup (EXotic Particle Emission and Radioactivity by Tracking) being operated inside the fragment separator and spectrometer facility at GSI, Darmstadt.Helmholtz Association de Alemania. IK-RU-002Russian Science Foundation. 17-12-01367Polish National Science Center. UMO2015/17/B/ST2/00581Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education. 0079/DIA/2014/43Helmholtz- CAS Joint Research Group de Alemania. HCJRG-108Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, España. FPA2016-77689-C2-1-RMinistry of Education, Youth and Sports de la República Checa. LTT17003 y LM201504

Spectroscopy of excited states of unbound nuclei 30 Ar and 29 Cl

Several states of proton-unbound isotopes 30 Ar and 29 Cl were investigated by measuring their in-flight decay products, 28 S + proton + proton and 28 S + proton, respectively. A refined analysis of 28 S -proton angular correlations indicates that the ground state of 30 Ar is located at 2 . 45 + 0.05 − 0.10 MeV above the two-proton emission threshold. The investigation of the decay mechanism of the 30 Ar ground state demonstrates that it has the transition dynamics. In the “transitional” region, the correlation patterns of the decay products present a surprisingly strong sensitivity to the two-proton decay energy of the 30 Ar ground state and the one-proton decay energy as well as the one-proton decay width of the 29 Cl ground state. The comparison of the experimental 28 S -proton angular correlations with those resulting from Monte Carlo simulations of the detector response illustrates that other observed 30 Ar excited states decay by sequential emission of protons via intermediate resonances in 29 Cl . Based on the findings, the decay schemes of the observed states in 30 Ar and 29 Cl were constructed. For calibration purposes and for checking the performance of the experimental setup, decays of the previously known states of a two-proton emitter 19 Mg were remeasured. Evidences for one new excited state in 19 Mg and two unknown states in 18 Na were found.Helmholtz International Center for FAIR de Alemania (HIC for FAIR) IK-RU-002Russian Ministry of Education and Science. NSh-932.2014.2Russian Science Foundation. 17-12-01367Polish National Science Center. UMO-2011/01/B/ST2/01943Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education. 0079/DIA/2014/43HelmholtzCAS Joint Research Group de Alemania. HCJRG-108Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades de España (MICINN). FPA2009-0884

Observation and spectroscopy of new proton-unbound isotopes 30ar and 29cl: an interplay of prompt two-proton and sequential decay

Previously unknown isotopes 30Ar and 29Cl have been identified by measurement of the trajectories of their in-flight decay products 28S+p+p and 28S+p, respectively. The analysis of angular correlations of the fragments provided information on decay energies and the structure of the parent states. The ground states of 30Ar and 29Cl were found at 2.25+0.15−0.10 and 1.8±0.1  MeV above the two- and one-proton thresholds, respectively. The lowest states in 30Ar and 29Cl point to a violation of isobaric symmetry in the structure of these unbound nuclei. The two-proton decay has been identified in a transition region between simultaneous two-proton and sequential proton emissions from the 30Ar ground state, which is characterized by an interplay of three-body and two-body decay mechanisms. The first hint of a fine structure of the two-proton decay of 30Ar∗(2+) has been obtained by detecting two decay branches into the ground and first-excited states of the 28S fragment.Polish National Science Center UMO-2011/01/B/ST2/0194

Physical Growth and Nonverbal Intelligence: Associations in Zambia

Objective: To investigate normative developmental body mass index (BMI) trajectories and associations of physical growth indicators—height, weight, head circumference (HC), and BMI—with nonverbal intelligence in an understudied population of children from sub-Saharan Africa. Study design: A sample of 3981 students (50.8% male), grades 3-7, with a mean age of 12.75 years was recruited from 34 rural Zambian schools. Children with low scores on vision and hearing screenings were excluded. Height, weight, and HC were measured, and nonverbal intelligence was assessed using the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test, Symbolic Memory subtest and Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition, Triangles subtest. Results: Students in higher grades had a higher BMI over and above the effect of age. Girls had a marginally higher BMI, although that for both boys and girls was approximately 1 SD below the international Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organization norms. When controlling for the effect of age, nonverbal intelligence showed small but significant positive relationships with HC (r = 0.17) and BMI (r = 0.11). HC and BMI accounted for 1.9% of the variance in nonverbal intelligence, over and above the contribution of grade and sex. Conclusion: BMI-for-age growth curves of Zambian children follow observed worldwide developmental trajectories. The positive relationships between BMI and intelligence underscore the importance of providing adequate nutritional and physical growth opportunities for children worldwide and in sub-Saharan Africa in particular. Directions for future studies are discussed with regard to maximizing the cognitive potential of all rural African children

SURVEY OF THE DEPENDENCE ON TEMPERATURE OF THE COERCIVITY OF GARNET-FILMS

The temperature dependence of the domain-wall coercive field of epitaxial magnetic garnets films has been investigated in the entire temperature range of the ferrimagnetic phase, and has been found to be described by a set of parametric exponents. In subsequent temperature regions different slopes were observed, with breaking points whose position was found to be sample dependent. A survey ba.ed on literature Data as well as on a large number of our own samples shows the general existence of this piecewise exponential dependence and the presence of the breaking points. This type of domain-wall coercive field temperature dependence was found in all samples in the large family of the epitaxial garnets (about 30 specimens of more than ten chemical compositionsj and also in another strongly anisotropic material (TbFeCo)

Three-body correlations in direct reactions: Example of 6^{6}Be populated in (p,n)(p,n) reaction

The $^{6}$Be continuum states were populated in the charge-exchange reaction $^1$H($^{6}$Li,$^{6}$Be)$n$ collecting very high statistics data ($\sim 5 \times 10^6$ events) on the three-body $\alpha$+$p$+$p$ correlations. The $^{6}$Be excitation energy region below $\sim 3$ MeV is considered, where the data are dominated by contributions from the $0^+$ and $2^+$ states. It is demonstrated how the high-statistics few-body correlation data can be used to extract detailed information on the reaction mechanism. Such a derivation is based on the fact that highly spin-aligned states are typically populated in the direct reactions.Comment: submitted to Physical Review

Getting something out of nothing: Analyzing patterns of null responses to improve data collection methods in sub-Saharan Africa

Careful development and adaptation of assessments is imperative for cultural psychological research. However, despite the best efforts, the use of assessments in new contexts can reveal atypical and/or unexpected patterns of performance. We found this to be the case in the testing of assessments to be used for a larger investigation of Specific Reading Disabilities in Zambia. In a sample of 207 children (100 female) from grades 2 to 7, we illustrated that assessment characteristics (i.e., stimulus type, answer choice, and response type) differentially impact patterns of responsiveness. The number of missing values was highest for assessments that (1) used written stimuli, (2) had an open-ended answer choice, and (3) required an action response. Age and socio-economic status explained some of the variance in responsiveness in selected, but not all assessments. Consideration of the impact of stimulus and response types when adapting assessments cross-linguistically and cross-culturally is essential