Resonant Ionization Laser Ion Source (RILIS) off-line developments on Ga, Al and Ca

Abstract

The Resonant Ionization Laser Ion Source (RILIS) is an element selective, highly efficient and versatile tool for generation of radioactive ion beams at on-line mass separator facilities. Parallel to TRIUMF’s on-line RILIS at the Isotope Separator and ACcelerator (ISAC) facility, an off-line Laser Ion Source test stand (LIS STAND) is operated for systematic laser resonance ionization spectroscopy, ionization scheme and ion source development. Three titanium sapphire (Ti:Sa) lasers optionally equipped with harmonic frequency generation units are used to resonantly step-wise excite and ionize elements of interest. A grating tuned Ti:Sa laser allows continuous laser wavelength scans of up to Δ≈200nm. With this laser inventory and the LIS STAND, atomic Rydberg series and auto-ionizing levels can systematically be studied. The LIS STAND has been in use since 2009 and so far the spectroscopy on Ga, Al and Ca has been performed. The development of efficient laser resonant ionization schemes, their investigation and comparison using the LIS STAND are discussed.