NG-TRAP: Measuring neutron capture cross-sections of short-lived fission fragments
We lack significant nuclear physics input to understand the rapid-neutron capture (r-)process fully. The r-process is the source of half the elements heavier than iron and the only way to produce the long-lived actinides we find on earth. This process’s key nuclear physics inputs are nuclear masses,...
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Published in | EPJ Web of Conferences Vol. 260; p. 11021 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article Conference Proceeding |
Language | English |
Published |
Les Ulis
EDP Sciences
01.01.2022
|
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | We lack significant nuclear physics input to understand the rapid-neutron capture (r-)process fully. The r-process is the source of half the elements heavier than iron and the only way to produce the long-lived actinides we find on earth. This process’s key nuclear physics inputs are nuclear masses, cross-sections of (n,
γ
) and (
γ
,n), and decay half-lives and branching ratios of neutron-rich isotopes. However, there is currently no method to directly measure neutron-induced reaction rates on short-lived nuclides, so there is no experimental data for the primary nuclear reaction that drives the r-process. We show here a conceptual design of a novel approach to access this information experimentally. The idea is to form a target of short-lived isotopes by confining them as ions in a radio-frequency (RF) trap. Next, they are irradiated with an intense neutron flux, and the reaction products are identified by mass spectrometry. The chosen method is a two-stage process in the presence of high neutron fluxes. The first process is neutron-induced fission in a thin actinide foil to create fission fragments. These fragments are slowed down in a cryogenic stopping cell before being filtered through a radio frequency quadrupole (RFQ) system. The RFQ system selects fission fragments of a specific atomic mass number
A
and confines them to a small volume in an RF trap, where they are irradiated for a second time in a controlled manner. The resultant
A
+1 isotopes are mass-selectively transported to a multiple-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer, where the reaction products are identified and counted. |
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ISSN: | 2100-014X 2101-6275 2100-014X |
DOI: | 10.1051/epjconf/202226011021 |