Orthopositronium Decay Research Articles

Discrete symmetries tested at 10−4 precision using linear polarization of photons from positronium annihilations

Discrete symmetries play an important role in particle physics with violation of CP connected to the matter-antimatter imbalance in the Universe. We report the most precise test of P, T and CP invariance in decays of ortho-positronium, performed with methodology involving polarization of photons from these decays. Positronium, the simplest bound state of an electron and positron, is of recent interest with discrepancies reported between measured hyperfine energy structure and theory at the level of 10−4 signaling a need for better understanding of the positronium system at this level. We test discrete symmetries using photon polarizations determined via Compton scattering in the dedicated J-PET tomograph on an event-by-event basis and without the need to control the spin of the positronium with an external magnetic field, in contrast to previous experiments. Our result is consistent with QED expectations at the level of 0.0007 and one standard deviation.

Advancements in the Studies of Multi-photon Decays of Ortho-Positronium with J-PET

Advancements in the Studies of Multi-photon Decays of Ortho-Positronium with J-PET

Search for CP-Violation in ortho-Positronium Decay

We report here on the design and development of a new apparatus aiming at a 10-fold improved search for CP-violation in ortho-Positronium decay to be performed at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams.

Multi-photon time-of-flight MLEM application for the positronium imaging in J-PET

Abstract We develop a positronium imaging method for the Jagiellonian PET (J-PET) scanners based on the time-of-flight maximum likelihood expectation maximisation (TOF MLEM). The system matrix elements are calculated on-the-fly for the coincidences comprising two annihilation and one de-excitation photons that originate from the ortho-positronium (o-Ps) decay. Using the Geant4 library, a Monte Carlo simulation was conducted for four cylindrical 22Na sources of β+ decay with diverse o-Ps mean lifetimes, placed symmetrically inside the two JPET prototypes. The estimated time differences between the annihilation and the positron emission were aggregated into histograms (one per voxel), updated by the weights of the activities reconstructed by TOF MLEM. The simulations were restricted to include only the o-Ps decays into back-to-back photons, allowing a linear fitting model to be employed for the estimation of the mean lifetime from each histogram built in the log scale. To suppress the noise, the exclusion of voxels with activity below 2% – 10% of the peak was studied. The estimated o-Ps mean lifetimes were consistent with the simulation and distributed quasi -uniformly at high MLEM iterations. The proposed positronium imaging technique can be further upgraded to include various correction factors, as well as be modified according to realistic o-Ps decay models.

Perspective of CP Violation Search by Modular J-PET Detector in the Ortho-Positronium Decay

Perspective of CP Violation Search by Modular J-PET Detector in the Ortho-Positronium Decay

Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy Insight on Free Volume Conversion of Nanostructured MgAl2O4 Ceramics.

Herein we demonstrate the specifics of using the positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) method for the study of free volume changes in functional ceramic materials. Choosing technological modification of nanostructured MgAl2O4 spinel as an example, we show that for ceramics with well-developed porosity positron annihilation is revealed through two channels: positron trapping channel and ortho-positronium decay. Positron trapping in free-volume defects is described by the second component of spectra and ortho-positronium decay process by single or multiple components, depending on how well porosity is developed and on the experimental configuration. When using proposed positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy approaches, three components are the most suitable fit in the case of MgAl2O4 ceramics. In the analysis of the second component, it is shown that technological modification (increasing sintering temperature) leads to volume shrinking and decreases the number of defect-related voids. This process is also accompanied by the decrease of the size of nanopores (described by the third component), while the overall number of nanopores is not affected. The approach to the analysis of positron annihilation lifetime spectra presented here can be applied to a wide range of functional nanomaterials with pronounced porosity.

Towards Time Reversal Symmetry Test with o-Ps Decays Using the J-PET Detector

One of the features of the triplet state of positronium (ortho-Positronium)atoms is its relatively longer lifetime when compared to the singlet states ofpositronium (para-Positronium) atoms. The most probable decay of ortho-Positronium is into three annihilation photons. In order to test the discretesymmetry using the time-reversal symmetry odd-operator, it is importantto identify ortho-Positronium decay. Identification of the decay of ortho-Positronium atoms by measuring the positronium annihilation lifetime withthe Jagiellonian-Positron Emission Tomograph (J-PET) is presented in this article.

Nanoporous characterization of modified humidity-sensitive MgO-Al2O3 ceramics by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy method

Investigation of nanopores in the humidity-sensitive MgO-Al2O3 ceramics modified at 1100°C for 2 hours was performed using positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy method. Lifetimes of the third and fourth components of positron annihilation lifetime spectra obtained by four-component fitting procedure were used for calculation of nanopores radii. Transformation in free volumes was studied in ceramics after drying and exposure to water vapor. It is established that the lifetime of the third component decreases and the intensity of this component increases in ceramics exposed to water vapor reflecting ortho-positronium decay in nanopores simultaneously with annihilation in water bubbles. The characteristics of the fourth component (lifetime and intensity) decrease in ceramics exposed to water vapor reflecting ortho-positronium trapping in free-water volume of nanopores. Final drying of the MgO-Al2O3 ceramics results in returning of ortho-positronium lifetimes and intensities to the initial values confirming good desorption of water from nanopores of ceramics.

A feasibility study of the time reversal violation test based on polarization of annihilation photons from the decay of ortho-Positronium with the J-PET detector

The Jagiellonian Positron Emission Tomograph (J-PET) is a novel device being developed at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland based on organic scintillators. J-PET is an axially symmetric (M. Mohammed) has been affiliated to affiliation 6. Please check if correct, otherwise, provide the correct affiliation.and high acceptance scanner that can be used as a multi-purpose detector system. It is well suited to pursue tests of discrete symmetries in decays of positronium in addition to medical imaging. J-PET enables the measurement of both momenta and the polarization vectors of annihilation photons. The latter is a unique feature of the J-PET detector which allows the study of time reversal symmetry violation operator which can be constructed solely from the annihilation photons momenta before and after the scattering in the detector.

A new approach for the ortho-positronium lifetime determination in a vacuum cavity

Currently, the experimental uncertainty for the determination of the ortho-positronium (o-Ps) decay rate is at 150 ppm precision; this is two orders of magnitude lower than the theoretical one, at 1 ppm level. Here we propose a new proof of concept experiment aiming for an accuracy of 100 ppm to be able to test the second-order correction in the calculations, which is . The improvement relies on a new technique to confine the o-Ps in a vacuum cavity. Moreover, a new method was developed to subtract the time dependent pick-off annihilation rate of the fast backscattered positronium from the o-Ps decay rate prior to fitting the distribution. Therefore, this measurement will be free from the systematic errors present in the previous experiments. The experimental setup developed for our recent search for invisible decay of ortho-positronium is being used. The precision will be limited by the statistical uncertainty, thus, if the expectations are fulfilled, this experiment could pave the way to reach the ultimate accuracy of a few ppm level to confirm or confront directly the higher order QED corrections. This will provide a sensitive test for new physics, e.g. a discrepancy between theoretical prediction and measurements could hint at the existence of a hidden sector which is a possible dark matter candidate.

First search for invisible decays of orthopositronium confined in a vacuum cavity

The experimental setup and results of the first search for invisible decays of ortho-positronium (o-Ps) confined in a vacuum cavity are reported. No evidence of invisible decays at a level $\text{Br}\left(\text{o-Ps}\to\text{invisible}\right) < 5.9\times 10^{-4}$ (90% C. L.) was found. This decay channel is predicted in Hidden Sector models such as the Mirror Matter (MM), which could be a candidate for Dark Matter. Analyzed within the MM context, this result provides an upper limit on the kinetic mixing strength between ordinary and mirror photons of $\epsilon < 3.1 \times 10^{-7}$ (90% C. L.). This limit was obtained for the first time in vacuum free of systematic effects due to collisions with matter.

Sub-MeV bosonic dark matter, misalignment mechanism, and galactic dark matter halo luminosities

We explore a scenario that the dark matter is a boson condensate created by the misalignment mechanism, in which a spin 0 boson (an axion-like particle) and a spin 1 boson (the dark photon) are considered, respectively. We find that although the sub-MeV dark matter boson is extremely stable, the huge number of dark matter particles in a galaxy halo makes the decaying signal detectable. A galaxy halo is a large structure bounded by gravity with a typical $\sim10^{12}$ solar mass, and the majority of its components are made of dark matter. For the axion-like particle case, it decays via $\phi\to \gamma\gamma$, therefore the photon spectrum is monochromatic. For the dark photon case, it is a three body decay $A'\to\gamma\gamma\gamma$. However, we find that the photon spectrum is heavily peaked at $M/2$ and thus can facilitate observation. We also suggest a physical explanation for the three body decay spectrum by comparing the physics in the decay of orthopositronium. In addition, for both cases, the decaying photon flux can be measured for some regions of parameter space using current technologies.

A feasibility study of ortho-positronium decays measurement with the J-PET scanner based on plastic scintillators.

We present a study of the application of the Jagiellonian positron emission tomograph (J-PET) for the registration of gamma quanta from decays of ortho-positronium (o-Ps). The J-PET is the first positron emission tomography scanner based on organic scintillators in contrast to all current PET scanners based on inorganic crystals. Monte Carlo simulations show that the J-PET as an axially symmetric and high acceptance scanner can be used as a multi-purpose detector well suited to pursue research including e.g. tests of discrete symmetries in decays of ortho-positronium in addition to the medical imaging. The gamma quanta originating from o-Ps decay interact in the plastic scintillators predominantly via the Compton effect, making the direct measurement of their energy impossible. Nevertheless, it is shown in this paper that the J-PET scanner will enable studies of the text{ o-Ps }rightarrow 3gamma decays with angular and energy resolution equal to sigma (theta ) approx {0.4^{circ }} and sigma (E) approx 4.1,{mathrm{keV}}, respectively. An order of magnitude shorter decay time of signals from plastic scintillators with respect to the inorganic crystals results not only in better timing properties crucial for the reduction of physical and instrumental background, but also suppresses significantly the pile-ups, thus enabling compensation of the lower efficiency of the plastic scintillators by performing measurements with higher positron source activities.

A new anti-neutrino detection technique based on positronium tagging with plastic scintillators

The main signature for anti-neutrino detection in reactor and geo-neutrino experiments based on scintillators is provided by the space–time coincidence of positron and neutron produced in the Inverse Beta Decay reaction. Such a signature strongly suppresses backgrounds and allows for measurements performed underground with a relatively high signal-to-background ratio. In an aboveground environment, however, the twofold coincidence technique is not sufficient to efficiently reject the high background rate induced by cosmogenic events. Enhancing the positron–neutron twofold coincidence efficiency may pave the way to future aboveground detectors for reactor monitoring. We propose a new detection scheme based on a threefold coincidence, among the positron ionization, the ortho-positronium (o-Ps) decay, and the neutron capture, in a sandwich detector with alternated layers of plastic scintillator and aerogel powder. We present the results of a set of dedicated measurements on the achievable light yield and on the o-Ps formation and lifetime. The efficiencies for signal detection and background rejection of a preliminary detector design are also discussed.

First test of O(α) correction on the energy spectrum in the orthopositronium decay

Positronium(Ps) is an ideal system for the precision test of quantum electrodynamics (QED) in bound state. Orthopositronium(o-Ps) decays into three gamma rays dominantly, and their energy spectrum has detail information on bound-state QED. The purpose of this study is to check the spectrum at the O(α) level accuracy. We constructed a setup for the precise measurement. Ps is created at silica aerogel in a vacuum chamber, and its decay gamma rays are measured with a LaBr3 (Ce) scintillator. In this setup, the materials around the Ps assembly and the detector are well-controlled, and all their responses are coded in a GEANT4 simulator in detail. After the measurement for 100 days, the obtained spectrum is compared with the expected spectrum from the QED calculations and the GEANT4 simulator. The obtained spectrum is consistent with O(a) calculation and excludes the lowest- order calculation at 92% C.L.

Positronium oscillations to mirror world revisited

We present a calculation of the branching ratio of orthopositronium decay into an invisible mode, which is done in the context of Mirror World models, where ordinary positronium can disappear from our world due to oscillation into its mirror twin. In this revision we clarify some formulas and approximations used previously, correct them at some places, add new effects relevant for a feasible experiment and finally perform a combined analysis. We include into consideration various effects due to external magnetic and electric fields, collisions with cavity walls and scattering off gas atoms in the cavity. Oscillations of the Rydberg positroniums are also considered. To perform a numerical estimates in a realistic case we wrote computer code, which can be adopted in any experimental setup. Its work is illustrated with an example of a planned positronium experiment within the AEgIS project.

Measurement of three gamma annihilation by lanthanum-based crystals compared with NaI(Tl) and HPGe

The relative yield of 3γ to 2γ annihilation was measured for a positron emitter, 22Na, with the new scintillator detectors lanthanum chloride (LaCl3:Ce) and lanthanum bromide (LaBr3:Ce), which had been characterised for comparison with high-purity germanium (HPGe) and sodium iodide (NaI(Tl)) detectors. The information obtained from the ortho-positronium 3γ decay in positron emission tomography (PET) can be a measure of the oxygen content in biological tissues by determination of this relative yield. However, it requires high resolution spectroscopy and detection efficiency. Characterisation of the new generation of scintillator detectors determines whether they could replace conventional scintillators and semiconductors. A series of experiments was carried out with different samples in order to study the effect of ortho-positronium formation. The peak-to-peak and the peak-to-valley methods were compared in the measurement of the relative yield of 3γ to 2γ annihilation.

Polarization effects in the decay of orthopositronium to three photons

We give results for the order-$\ensuremath{\alpha}$ radiative corrections to several polarization-related effects involving the decay of ortho-positronium (o-Ps) to three photons. Specifically, we consider the decays of spin-polarized o-Ps from states of specified spin component $m$ into final states where the direction of the normal to the decay plane is measured, the linear polarization of one photon is observed, and the two variables giving the energies, or equivalently the relative orientations of the photons in the decay plane, are measured.

Some QED processes: Light-by-light and moeller scattering

We consider several applications of the simplest nonlinear QED phenomena described by the light-by-light (LBL) scattering tensor. Among the relevant processes we present the splitting of high energy photon in a Coulomb field, calculate the asymptotics of differential photon photon elastic scattering. We show that LBL mechanism of the four photon mode of neutral pion decay have a dominant role compared, for instance, with the quark loop Feynman amplitude contribution. The mechanisms of creation of two and three gluon jets at colliding electro-positron beams is analyzed. We calculate also the contribution of LBL mechanism to the ortho-positronium decay width. One Of the important application is the analytic calculation of the QED contribution to the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon arising from LBL mechanism realized through electron positron loops, which is enhanced by the logarithm of the ratio of muon to electron masses. The modification of the QED kernel, which takes into account the QED polarization operator is used to extract the pure strong interaction contribution. We consider as well the problem of the Coulomb law modification. At second part of review we consider Moeller scattering process and RC to it. We show that RC are in agreement with renormalization group approach and could be taken into account in form of Drell-Yan process cross-section.

GEANT4 SIMULATIONS OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM ACCELERATED PARTICLES IN SOLAR FLARES

Gamma-ray spectroscopy provides diagnostics of particle acceleration in solar flares, but care must be taken when interpreting the spectra due to effects of the angular distribution of the accelerated particles (such as relativistic beaming) and Compton reprocessing of the radiation in the solar atmosphere. In this paper, we use the GEANT4 Monte Carlo package to simulate the interactions of accelerated electrons and protons and study these effects on the gamma-rays resulting from electron bremsstrahlung and pion decay. We consider the ratio of the 511~keV annihilation-line flux to the continuum at 200~keV and in the energy band just above the nuclear de-excitation lines (8--15~MeV) as a diagnostic of the accelerated particles and a point of comparison with data from the X17 flare of 2003 October 28. We also find that pion secondaries from accelerated protons produce a positron annihilation line component at a depth of $\sim$ 10 g cm$^{-2}$, and that the subsequent Compton scattering of the 511~keV photons produces a continuum that can mimic the spectrum expected from the 3$\gamma$ decay of orthopositronium.