207 research outputs found
First Calorimetric Measurement of OI-line in the Electron Capture Spectrum of Ho
The isotope Ho undergoes an electron capture process with a
recommended value for the energy available to the decay, , of about
2.5 keV. According to the present knowledge, this is the lowest
value for electron capture processes. Because of that, Ho is the best
candidate to perform experiments to investigate the value of the electron
neutrino mass based on the analysis of the calorimetrically measured spectrum.
We present for the first time the calorimetric measurement of the atomic
de-excitation of the Dy daughter atom upon the capture of an electron
from the 5s shell in Ho, OI-line. The measured peak energy is 48 eV.
This measurement was performed using low temperature metallic magnetic
calorimeters with the Ho ion implanted in the absorber.
We demonstrate that the calorimetric spectrum of Ho can be measured
with high precision and that the parameters describing the spectrum can be
learned from the analysis of the data. Finally, we discuss the implications of
this result for the Electron Capture Ho experiment, ECHo, aiming to
reach sub-eV sensitivity on the electron neutrino mass by a high precision and
high statistics calorimetric measurement of the Ho spectrum.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Mass measurements beyond the major r-process waiting point 80Zn
High-precision mass measurements on neutron-rich zinc isotopes 71m,72-81Zn
have been performed with the Penning trap mass spectrometer ISOLTRAP. For the
first time the mass of 81Zn has been experimentally determined. This makes 80Zn
the first of the few major waiting points along the path of the astrophysical
rapid neutron capture process where neutron separation energy and neutron
capture Q-value are determined experimentally. As a consequence, the
astrophysical conditions required for this waiting point and its associated
abundance signatures to occur in r-process models can now be mapped precisely.
The measurements also confirm the robustness of the N = 50 shell closure for Z
= 30 farther from stability.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
First detection and energy measurement of recoil ions following beta decay in a Penning trap with the WITCH experiment
The WITCH experiment (Weak Interaction Trap for CHarged particles) will
search for exotic interactions by investigating the beta-neutrino angular
correlation via the measurement of the recoil energy spectrum after beta decay.
As a first step the recoil ions from the beta-minus decay of 124In stored in a
Penning trap have been detected. The evidence for the detection of recoil ions
is shown and the properties of the ion cloud that forms the radioactive source
for the experiment in the Penning trap are presented.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures (9 figure files), submitted to European Physical
Journal
Separated Oscillatory Fields for High-Precision Penning Trap Mass Spectrometry
Ramsey's method of separated oscillatory fields is applied to the excitation
of the cyclotron motion of short-lived ions in a Penning trap to improve the
precision of their measured mass. The theoretical description of the extracted
ion-cyclotron-resonance line shape is derived out and its correctness
demonstrated experimentally by measuring the mass of the short-lived Ca
nuclide with an uncertainty of using the ISOLTRAP Penning
trap mass spectrometer at CERN. The mass value of the superallowed beta-emitter
Ca is an important contribution for testing the conserved-vector-current
hypothesis of the electroweak interaction. It is shown that the Ramsey method
applied to mass measurements yields a statistical uncertainty similar to that
obtained by the conventional technique ten times faster.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, 0 table
Evidence for a breakdown of the Isobaric Multiplet Mass Equation: A study of the A=35, T=3/2 isospin quartet
Mass measurements on radionuclides along the potassium isotope chain have
been performed with the ISOLTRAP Penning trap mass spectrometer. For 35K
T1/2=178ms) to 46K (T1/2=105s) relative mass uncertainties of 2x10-8 and better
have been achieved. The accurate mass determination of 35K (dm=0.54keV) has
been exploited to test the Isobaric Multiplet Mass Equation (IMME) for the
A=35, T=3/2 isospinquartet. The experimental results indicate a deviation from
the generally adopted quadratic form.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Characterization of the Ho Electron Capture Spectrum: A Step Towards the Electron Neutrino Mass Determination
The isotope Ho is in many ways the best candidate to perform experiments to investigate the value of the electron neutrino mass. It undergoes an electron capture process to Dy with an energy available to the decay, Q, of about 2.8 keV. According to the present knowledge, this is the lowest Q value for such transitions. Here we discuss a newly obtained spectrum of Ho, taken by cryogenic metallic magnetic calorimeters with Ho implanted in the absorbers and operated in anticoincident mode for background reduction. For the first time, the atomic deexcitation of the Dy daughter atom following the capture of electrons from the 5s shell in Ho, the OI line, was observed with a calorimetric measurement. The peak energy is determined to be 48 eV. In addition, a precise determination of the energy available for the decay Q=(2.858±0.010±0.05) keV was obtained by analyzing the intensities of the lines in the spectrum. This value is in good agreement with the measurement of the mass difference between Ho and Dy obtained by Penning-trap mass spectrometry, demonstrating the reliability of the calorimetric technique
Q-Value and Half-Lives for the Double-Beta-Decay Nuclide 110Pd
The 110Pd double-beta decay Q-value was measured with the Penning-trap mass
spectrometer ISOLTRAP to be Q = 2017.85(64) keV. This value shifted by 14 keV
compared to the literature value and is 17 times more precise, resulting in new
phase-space factors for the two-neutrino and neutrinoless decay modes. In
addition a new set of the relevant matrix elements has been calculated. The
expected half-life of the two-neutrino mode was reevaluated as 1.5(6) E20 yr.
With its high natural abundance, the new results reveal 110Pd to be an
excellent candidate for double-beta decay studies
Penning trap mass measurements on (99-109)$Cd with ISOLTRAP and implications on the rp process
Penning trap mass measurements on neutron-deficient Cd isotopes (99-109)Cd
have been performed with the ISOLTRAP mass spectrometer at ISOLDE/CERN, all
with relative mass uncertainties below 3*10^8. A new mass evaluation has been
performed. The mass of 99Cd has been determined for the first time which
extends the region of accurately known mass values towards the doubly magic
nucleus 100Sn. The implication of the results on the reaction path of the rp
process in stellar X-ray bursts is discussed. In particular, the uncertainty of
the abundance and the overproduction created by the rp-process for the mass A =
99 is demonstrated by reducing the uncertainty of the proton-separation energy
of 100In Sp(100In) by a factor of 2.5.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure
High-accuracy mass measurements of neutron-rich Kr isotopes
The atomic masses of the neutron-rich krypton isotopes 84,86-95Kr have been determined with the tandem Penning trap mass spectrometer ISOLTRAP with uncertainties ranging from 20 to 220 ppb. The masses of the short-lived isotopes 94Kr and 95Kr were measured for the first time. The masses of the radioactive nuclides 89Kr and 91Kr disagree by 4 and 6 standard deviations, respectively, from the present Atomic-Mass Evaluation database. The resulting modification of the mass surface with respect to the two-neutron separation energies as well as implications for mass models and stellar nucleosynthesis are discussed
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