3He Nuclei Research Articles

Faddeev Three-body Calculation of Triple-Alpha Reaction

The triple-alpha (3α) process, in which three 4He nuclei are transformed into a 12C nucleus, is studied in terms of a three-alpha (3-α) model. The reaction rate of the process is calculated via an inverse process, 3-α photodisintegration of a 12C nucleus. Both of 3-α bound and -continuum states are calculated by a Faddeev method with accommodating the long range Coulomb interaction. Results of the 3α reaction rate are about 103 times larger than a standard rate from the Nuclear Astrophysics Compilation of Reaction Rates (NACRE) at a low temperature (T = 107 K), which means our results are remarkably smaller than recent three-body calculations by the method of continuum-discretized coupled-channel.

Correlation effects in the production of 3He nuclei in 16Op collisions at a momentum of 3.25 GeV/c per nucleon

New experimental data on the dependence of the mean multiplicities and kinematical features of 3He nuclei produced in 16Op collisions at a momentum of 3.25 GeV/c per nucleon on the degree of excitation of the fragmenting nucleus are presented. Strong correlations between the multiplicities of negatively charged pions and 3He nuclei are found.

Mechanisms of sequential particle transfer and characteristics of light neutron-excess and oriented nuclei

The procedure for evaluating the second-order corrections to the matrix elements of the reaction A(x, y)B, which are obtained using the method of distorted waves with a finite radius of intercluster interaction (DWBAFR), is developed. It is based on the assumption of a virtual cluster structure of light nuclei and uses integral equations for a four-body problem in the Alt-Grassberger-Sandhas formalism. These corrections are related with the mechanisms of sequential particles transfer. The latter are represented by the quadrangle diagrams. Their matrix elements are summed up coherently with those given by the pole and triangle diagrams which were calculated by using DWBAFR. The computer code QUADRO is written for the numerical implementation of the method proposed. The statistical tensors of nucleus B formed in the reaction A(x, y)B at incident particle energies of about 10 MeV/nucleon in the center of mass frame are determined. Specific calculations allowed for description of both the experimental cross sections (0-rank statistical tensors) of various reactions (including those where nucleus B has some excess neutrons) and polarized characteristics of nucleus B* (in the case of the latter produced in the exited state). A two-neutron periphery of nuclei 6He, 10Be, 12B (both in dineutron and cigarlike configurations) is restored by analyzing the differential cross sections of elastic alpha-6He-scattering and 9Be(d, p)10Be and 10B(t, p)12B reactions. It is shown that the structure of neutron peripheries is fundamentally different for these nuclei and its feature depends on the way those neutron-excess nuclei are formed: in 6He both configurations contribute to a two-neutron halo, while in 10Be there is a barely noticeable one-neutron halo, and in 12B there is a “dineutron skin”. Orientation characteristics of nuclei B* are calculated. Their comparison with experimental data made it possible to draw important conclusions about a contribution to the statistical tensors of nucleus B* coming from the two-step mechanisms and its impact on the properties of oriented light nuclei, including their polarization. Finally, a simplified method for calculating the matrix elements of mechanisms, which take into account sequential particle transfer, is proposed. It is demonstrated to be correct by evaluating a contribution of the corresponding corrections to the total amplitude of the reaction.

Differential Cross Section of Electron Scattering From 3He and 3H Nuclei with Considering Pionic Contribution

The excess pion inside the nucleus could change not only nucleons structure function, but also electron scattering cross section from nuclei. In this paper, we calculate pionic contribution in nuclear structure functions of 3He and 3H nuclei and the differential cross sections of electron scattering from these nuclei. At first, we calculate the Fermi motion and binding energy contribution as an important nuclear medium effect in scattering cross sections and then we add pionic contribution to structure functions and differential cross sections of electron scattering from these nuclei that the Fermi motion and binding energy are considered.

Double antikaonic nuclear clusters in antiproton-3He annihilation at J-PARC

We search for double anti-kaon nuclear bound states in the \(\bar p\) annihilation reaction in 3He nuclei at rest. In view of the strongly attractive \(\bar K N\) interaction, the existence of nuclear clusters with more than one K − has been predicted theoretically. The double anti-kaon production in elementary antiproton annihilation at rest is forbidden because of the negative Q-value; however, a double anti-kaon nuclear bound state, such as K − K − pp, with deep binding energy would enable double anti-kaon production in the nuclei. In order to investigate the K − K − pp production in the \(\bar p + ^3{\rm He} \to K^+ + K^0 + X~(X = K^-K^-pp)\) channel, the produced K − K − pp cluster is identified both using missing mass spectroscopy via the K + K0 channel with a Λ-tag, and invariant mass analysis of the expected decay particles from the K − K − pp cluster such as ΛΛ. We propose to perform the experiment at the existing K1.8BR beam line at J-PARC with the E15 spectrometer.

Experimental studies of few-body systems at MAMI

Few-body experiments at the Mainz Microtron were focused on a number of selected topics. Double-polarization experiments to determine the neutron electric form factor Gen have been performed using both deuterium and polarized helium-3 targets. The structure of 3He has been studied in the reactions 3H e e(ee,e′n) and 3H e e(ee,e′p) with large (transversal) missing momenta and in quasi-elastic electron scattering. Electromagnetically induced two-nucleon knockout has been investigated in order to study the role of correlated nucleon-nucleon motion in the nucleus. Measurements of the (e,e′pn) reaction on 3He and 16O were performed for the first time. A triple-polarization experiment of type 3H e e(ee,e′ep)d has been performed, where, in addition, the spin of the knocked out proton is analyzed. This measurement provides information on the spin-dependent momentum distribution of proton-deuteron clusters in the 3He nucleus. Hence, by tagging the outgoing deuteron spin-polarized 3He might also serve as an effective polarized proton target for electron scattering experiments. Moreover, in inclusive 3,4He(e,e′) measurements at low momentum transfer, the effect of 3-body-forces has been studied.

The COMBAS fragment separator

The basic ion-optical characteristics of the COMBAS fragment separator are analyzed. The momentum distributions of radioactive 6He, 8He, and 9Li nuclei obtained in the reaction 11B (33 A MeV, where A is the mass number of a particle) + 9Be (332.6 mg/cm2) have been investigated in forward-angle measurements on the COMBAS fragment separator. The momentum and angular (horizontal) acceptances of the COMBAS separator have been measured using the 6He, 8He, and 9Li beams. It has been ascertained that the images of the 6He, 8He, and 9Li nuclear beams in final achromatic focus of the separator Fa approximately twofold exceed the size of the beam on a producing target (input focus F0), at which the primary beam has a diameter of 6 mm. The intensities of 6He, 8He, and 9Li beams obtained at a 5-μA intensity of the primary 11B beam are 6.9 × 105, 2 × 104, and 4.7 × 105 particles/s, respectively. These values are sufficient for use in spectroscopic measurements. It is proposed that time-of-flight analysis of nuclear reaction products at the exit from the COMBAS separator will be used not only to measure the energy of transported particles over the whole operating range of the momentum acceptance, but also to identify them by mass A and charge Z without loss of these particles. The problem of reducing the count rates of detectors and further improvement of their energy resolution for detected particles can be solved by placing a high-resolution magnetic spectrometer past the second target accepting the secondary radioactive nuclear beams.

One-nucleon exchange and the effective local potential in nucleus-nucleus scattering

The influence of one-nucleon exchange on the local nucleus-nucleus potential is investigated using the resonating group method. Neutron scattering on 4He and 16O nuclei is examined in detail. The results are compared to microscopic calculations.

A study of the ground-state energy of 4He with nucleon–nucleon potentials

Ground-state properties are evaluated for the finite nucleus 4He starting from realistic nucleon–nucleon interactions within the framework of the Green’s function approach. For the sake of comparison, the same calculations are performed using the Brueckner–Hartree–Fock approximation. For that purpose four high-quality modern nucleon–nucleon interactions represented in momentum space are employed: the Argonne V18, CD-Bonn, Bonn A and N 3LO potentials. In these potentials, the effects of charge dependence are taken into account. Additional binding energy is obtained from the inclusion of the hole–hole scattering term within the framework of the Green function approach. It has been shown that the Green function results agree well with the results obtained by accurate methods for few-nucleon systems such as the Faddeev–Yakubovsky calculation. In this study, a comparison of the calculated ground-state energies, obtained by using the Green function approach and different nucleon–nucleon potentials, with experimental values is carried out. The results show good agreement between the calculated values and the experimental ones.

Precision measurement of the η-mass at COSY-ANKE

Measurements on the mass of the η-meson performed at different experimental facilities over the last decade have resulted in very precise results but differ by up to 0.5 MeV/c2 i e, more than eight standard deviations. In order to clarify this situation a new high precision measurement of the dp → 3Heη reaction was conducted at the COoler SYnchrotron – COSY – of the Forschungszentrum Jülich using the ANKE magnetic spectrometer, with the aim to achieve a mass resolution of Δm < 50 keV/c2. In order to measure the η meson mass with high accuracy through the dp → 3Heη reaction, both the momentum of the circulating deuteron beam in COSY as well as of the emitted 3He nucleus has to be determined with high precision. The experimentally achieved resolution for the momenta of the 3He nuclei and the beam deuterons will allow to reach the envisaged η-meson mass resolution.

Holographic 3He and 4He nuclei

The potential energy of 3He and 4He nuclei has been studied using the AdS/CFT correspondence. We consider a holographic picture for 3He and 4He nuclei and obtained their potentials using the holographic nucleon–nucleon potential. Then we calculate the binding energies of the nuclei by these potentials. Also, we obtain the energy of some excited states for the 4He nucleus. Similar calculations show that there is no excited state for the 3He nucleus. Our results are in good agreement with the experimental data.

Calculating the characteristics of neutron-deuteron and proton-deuteron systems in a two-body potential model

3H and 3He nuclei are considered in a two-body model (3H = n + d; 3He = p + d). Two independent approaches are used: in the first, interaction is described by the folding potential, while NN potentials are taken in the Hulthen form with allowance for violations of isotopic invariance. The second approach features phenomenological Hulthen and Yukawa Nd potentials used as Nd interaction. In both approaches, the binding energies, vertex constants, and asymptotic normalization coefficients in the N+d channel are calculated.

Progress in Condensed Cluster Fusion Theory

The theoretical models on Condensed Cluster Fusion in the dynamic ordering process of deuterons in condensed matter (especially PdDx lattice) have been elaborated in three steps in the period from 1989 to 2009. The present paper briefly reviews theoretical modeling, mathematical formulation and quantitative estimations of multi-body deuteron fusion rates, time-dependent screening effect by electron clouds, and time-dependent size of condensing clusters as 4D/TSC. TSC is the tetrahedral symmetric condensate and key idea for clustering and dynamic condensation. Final products of 4D fusion are mainly 4He nuclei with 2–5 MeV main component and 23.8 MeV minor component.

Optimised adiabatic fast passage spin flipping for 3He neutron spin filters

We describe here a method of performing adiabatic fast passage (AFP) spin flipping of polarized 3He used as a neutron spin filter (NSF) to polarize neutron beams. By reversing the spin states of the 3He nuclei the polarization of a neutron beam can be efficiently reversed allowing for the transmission of a neutron beam polarized in either spin state. Using an amplitude modulated frequency sweep lasting 500ms we can spin flip a polarized 3He neutron spin filter with only 1.8×10−5 loss in 3He polarization. The small magnetic fields (10–15G) used to house neutron spin filters mean the 3He resonant frequencies are low enough to be generated using a computer with a digital I/O card. The versatility of this systems allows AFP to be performed on any beamline or in any laboratory using 3He neutron spin filters and polarization losses can be minimised by adjusting sweep parameters.

Toward describing one-nucleon exchange in nucleus-nucleus scattering

The effect of one-nucleon exchanges on the potential of nucleus-nucleus interaction is considered on the basis of the resonating-group method. Corrections to the folding-model potential are obtained in the semiclassical approximation. Neutron scattering on 4He nuclei is considered as a model example.

Short-pulse ECR: A source of multiply charged ions

Extensive investigation is now under way in CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) in the framework of the Beta Beam project with the aim of gaining insight into neutrino oscillations. It is suggested that the decay of 6He nuclei produce neutrino beams accelerated to an energy on the order of 100 GeV/nucleon. To this end, it is necessary to generate short-pulse (30–100 μs) beams of multiply charged ions of this isotope. Conventional ECR-based ion sources seem to be inappropriate for this purpose, since the plasma density grows slowly (for more than a millisecond) in this case compared with the desired pulse duration. A design concept of a short-pulse ECR-based source of multiply charged ions is proposed. In experiments with pumping at frequencies of 37.5 and 75.0 GHz, pulses as short as ∼50 μs were obtained. Good agreement between theory and experiments is demonstrated.

Sub-barrier fusion of two-neutron halo nuclei

The tunneling of composite systems, where breakup may occur during the barrier penetration process, is considered in connection with the fusion of halo-like radioactive, neutron- and proton-rich nuclei, on heavy targets. The large amount of recent and new data clearly indicates that breakup hinders the fusion at energies near and below the Coulomb barrier. However, clear evidence for enhancement due to halo properties seems to over ride the breakup hindrance at lower energies, owing, to a large extent, to the extended matter density distribution. In particular we report here that at sub-barrier energies the fusion cross section of the Borromean two-neutron halo nucleus 6He with the actinide nucleus 238U is significantly enhanced as compared to the fusion of a similar projectile with no halo. This conclusion differs from that of the original work, where it was claimed that no such enhancement ensues. This sub-barrier fusion enhancement is also observed in the 6He+209Bi system.

In-situ Polarized 3He-Based Neutron Polarization Analyzer for SNS Magnetism Reflectometer

We report here the construction and neutron transmission test results of an in-situ polarized 3He-based neutron polarization analyzer system for the Magnetism Reflectometer at the Spallation Neutron Source, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The analyzer uses the Spin-Exchange Optical Pumping method to polarize the 3He nuclei of a cell of 3He gas. Polarized neutrons scattered from the sample are intercepted by the polarized 3He gas which strongly absorbs neutrons in one spin-state while allowing most neutrons in the other spin-state to pass through. To maintain a stable analyzing efficiency during an experiment, the 3He gas is continuously polarized in-situ on the instrument. Neutron transmission measurements showed that 73% 3He polarization was reached in this setup.

Ab initiocoupled-cluster approach to nuclear structure with modern nucleon-nucleon interactions

We perform coupled-cluster calculations for the doubly magic nuclei 4He, 16O, 40Ca and 48Ca, for neutron-rich isotopes of oxygen and fluorine, and employ "bare" and secondary renormalized nucleon-nucleon interactions. For the nucleon-nucleon interaction from chiral effective field theory at order next-to-next-to-next-to leading order, we find that the coupled-cluster approximation including triples corrections binds nuclei within 0.4 MeV per nucleon compared to data. We employ interactions from a resolution-scale dependent similarity renormalization group transformations and assess the validity of power counting estimates in medium-mass nuclei. We find that the missing contributions due to three-nucleon forces are consistent with these estimates. For the unitary correlator model potential, we find a slow convergence with respect to increasing the size of the model space. For the G-matrix approach, we find a weak dependence of ground-state energies on the starting energy combined with a rather slow convergence with respect to increasing model spaces. We also analyze the center-of-mass problem and present a practical and efficient solution.

Elastic Scattering of 6He + p at 82.3 MeV/nucleon

Differential cross sections for the elastic scattering of halo nucleus 6He on proton target were measured at 82.3 MeV/u. The experimental results are well reproduced by optical model calculations using global potential KD02 with a reduction of the depth of real volume part by a factor of 0.7. A systematic analysis shows that this behavior might be related to the weakly bound property of unstable nuclei.