Half-life measurement of 133mCe with $ \gamma$ -spectrometry

Abstract

In this paper we describe our experiment determining the half-life of 133mCe . An activation-based nuclear-reaction cross-section measurement has been carried out for the 130Ba( $ \alpha$ , n)133mCe reaction, in order to improve our knowledge of the astrophysical p-process. For the analysis of such a measurement, the precise knowledge of the decay half-life of the reaction product is desired. In the case of 133mCe the literature half-life value has only been known with a high relative uncertainty. A measurement utilizing $ \gamma$ -spectrometry has been carried out to refine the half-life of 133mCe . As a result, the new recommended half-life is t 1/2 = (5.326±0.011) h. This value has been found to be consistent with the previous literature value, while its uncertainty has been reduced by more than a factor of 30.