The electric dipole response of 76^{76}Se above 4 MeV

The dipole response of $^{76}_{34}$Se in the energy range 4 to 9 MeV has been analyzed using a $(\vec\gamma,{\gamma}')$ polarized photon scattering technique, performed at the High Intensity $\gamma$-Ray Source facility, to complement previous work performed using unpolarized photons. The results of this work offer both an enhanced sensitivity scan of the dipole response and an unambiguous determination of the parities of the observed J=1 states. The dipole response is found to be dominated by $E1$ excitations, and can reasonably be attributed to a pygmy dipole resonance. Evidence is presented to suggest that a significant amount of directly unobserved excitation strength is present in the region, due to unobserved branching transitions in the decays of resonantly excited states. The dipole response of the region is underestimated when considering only ground state decay branches. We investigate the electric dipole response theoretically, performing calculations in a 3D cartesian-basis time-dependent Skyrme-Hartree-Fock framework.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures, to be submitted to PR

Structure of high-lying levels populated in the Y-96 -> Zr-96 beta decay

The nature of $J^{\pi}=1^-$ levels of $^{96}$Zr below the $\beta$-decay $Q_{\beta}$ value of $^{96}$Y has been investigated in high-resolution $\gamma$-ray spectroscopy following the $\beta$ decay as well as in a campaign of inelastic photon scattering experiments. Branching ratios extracted from $\beta$ decay allow the absolute $E1$ excitation strength to be determined for levels populated in both reactions. The combined data represents a comprehensive approach to the wavefunction of $1^-$ levels below the $Q_{\beta}$ value, which are investigated in the theoretical approach of the Quasiparticle Phonon Model. This study clarifies the nuclear structure properties associated with the enhanced population of high-lying levels in the $^{96}$Y$_{gs}$ $\beta$ decay, one of the three most important contributors to the high-energy reactor antineutrino spectrum

FIER: Software for analytical modeling of delayed gamma-ray spectra

A new software package, the Fission Induced Electromagnetic Response (FIER) code, has been developed to analytically predict delayed γ-ray spectra following fission. FIER uses evaluated nuclear data and solutions to the Bateman equations to calculate the time-dependent populations of fission products and their decay daughters resulting from irradiation of a fissionable isotope. These populations are then used in the calculation of γ-ray emission rates to obtain the corresponding delayed γ-ray spectra. FIER output was compared to experimental data obtained by irradiation of a 235U sample in the Godiva critical assembly. This investigation illuminated discrepancies in the input nuclear data libraries, showcasing the usefulness of FIER as a tool to address nuclear data deficiencies through comparison with experimental data. FIER provides traceability between γ-ray emissions and their contributing nuclear species, decay chains, and parent fission fragments, yielding a new capability for the nuclear science community

The B-10((p)over-right-arrow, gamma)C-11 reaction at astrophysically relevant energies

The B-10(, gamma)C-11 reaction was studied by detecting the gamma-rays produced when 100, 130-, and 160-keV polarized protons were stopped in a thick B-10 target. Polarized and unpolarized incident beams were used to measure the cross section and vector analyzing power as a function of angle and energy for capture to the ground (J(pi)=3/2(-)), the second (E=4319 keV, J(pi)=5/2(-)), and the fifth (E=6478 keV, J(pi)=7/2(-)) excited states of C-11. The data were analyzed to obtain the amplitudes and phases of the contributing transition-matrix elements at each measured energy for all three transitions. Values of the astrophysical S factors were obtained from the cross section data and are compared to previous results. A direct capture plus resonance model calculation was performed in an attempt to account for all measured quantities. It was found that the large (similar to32%) value of A(y)(90degrees) observed in the case of capture to the ground state could be accounted for by including the subthreshold resonance at 8420 keV

Two-body photodisintegration of (3)He between 7 and 16 MeV

A comprehensive data set is reported for the two-body photodisintegration cross section of (3)He using mono-energetic photon beams at eleven energies between 7.0 and 16.0 MeV. A (3)He + Xe high-pressure gas scintillator served as target and detector. Although our data are in much better agreement with our state-of-the-art theoretical calculations than the majority of the previous data, these calculations underpredict the new data by about 10%. This disagreement suggests an incomplete understanding of the dynamics of the three-nucleon system and its response to electromagnetic probes. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved