Statistical analysis of rare events—synthesis of the element 114

Abstract

Rare events pose a problem: is an observed chain of radioactive decays that of the background, or are they genetically linked? The paper suggests an approach for the problem solution, based on formalization of the background concept. This approach is an inevitable alternative to other methods, which require the a priori information about the linked decays, in a situation when such information is absent, but, instead, the background information is available, e.g., from the calibration measurements. The method is illustrated by the analysis of data registered in the experiment on the synthesis of the element 114 as one of practically important examples of the analysis of rare events.