Transition Strengths Research Articles

Bound-State Beta Decay of Tl20581+ Ions and the LOREX Project

Stable Tl205 ions have the lowest known energy threshold for capturing electron neutrinos (νe) of Eνe≥50.6 keV. The Lorandite Experiment (LOREX), proposed in the 1980s, aims at obtaining the longtime averaged solar neutrino flux by utilizing natural deposits of Tl-bearing lorandite ores. To determine the νe capture cross section, it is required to know the strength of the weak transition connecting the ground state of Tl205 and the 2.3 keV first excited state in Pb205. The only way to experimentally address this transition is to measure the bound-state beta decay (βb) of fully ionized Tl81+205 ions. After three decades of meticulous preparation, the half-life of the βb decay of Tl81+205 has been measured to be 291−27+33 days using the Experimental Storage Ring (ESR) at GSI, Darmstadt. The longer measured half-life compared to theoretical estimates reduces the expected signal-to-noise ratio in the LOREX, thus challenging its feasibility. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Observing vibronic coupling in a strongly hydrogen bonded system with coherent multidimensional vibrational-electronic spectroscopy.

The coupled structural and electronic parameters of intramolecular hydrogen bonding play an important role in ultrafast chemical reactions, such as proton transfer processes. We perform one- and two-dimensional vibrational-electronic (1D and 2D VE) spectroscopy experiments to understand the couplings between vibrational and electronic coordinates in 10-Hydroxybenzo[h]quinoline, an ultrafast proton transfer system. The experiments reveal that the OH stretch (νOH) is strongly coupled to the electronic excitation, and Fourier analysis of the 1D data shows coherent oscillations from the low frequency backbone vibrational modes coupled to the νOH mode, resulting in an electronically detected vibronic signal. In-plane low-frequency vibrations at 242 and 386 cm-1 change the hydrogen bond distance and modulate the observed electronic signal in the polarization-selective 1D VE experiment through orientation-dependent coupling with the νOH mode. Resolution of the excitation frequency axis with 2D VE experiments reveals that excitation frequency, detection frequency, and experimental delay affect the frequency and strength of the vibronic transitions observed. Our results demonstrate evidence of direct coupling of the high frequency νOH mode with the S1 ← S0 electronic transition in 10-Hydroxybenzo[h]quinoline (HBQ), and orientation-dependent couplings of the low-frequency 242 and 386 cm-1 modes to the νOH mode and the electronic transition. This demonstration of multidimensional VE spectroscopy on HBQ reveals the potential of using 1D and 2D VE spectroscopy to develop a quantitative understanding of the role of vibronic coupling in hydrogen bonding and ultrafast proton transfer for complex systems.

Two-Photon Absorption Strengths of Small Molecules: Reference CC3 Values and Benchmarks.

We present a large dataset of highly accurate two-photon transition strengths (δTPA) determined for standard small molecules. Our reference values have been calculated using the quadratic response implementation of the third-order coupled cluster method including iterative triples (Q-CC3). The aug-cc-pVTZ atomic basis set is used for molecules with up to five non-hydrogen atoms, while larger molecules are assessed with aug-cc-pVDZ; the differences due to the basis sets are discussed. This dataset, encompassing 82 singlet transitions of various characters (Rydberg, valence, and double excitations), enables a comprehensive benchmark of smaller basis sets and alternative wavefunction methods when Q-CC3 calculations become beyond reach as well as time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) approaches. The evaluated wavefunction methods include quadratic response and equation-of-motion CCSD approximations, Q-CC2, and second-order algebraic diagrammatic construction in its intermediate state representation (I-ADC2). In the TD-DFT framework, a set of five commonly used exchange-correlation functionals are evaluted. This extensive analysis provides a quantitative assessment of these methods, revealing how different system sizes, response intensities, and types of transitions affect their performances.

Integrating simulated and experimental studies on novel single crystal bis(guanidininium) n-carboxylatephenylalanine towards enhanced antitumor effect

A novel organic crystal bis(guanidininium) n-carboxylatephenylalanine (GUPA) was synthesized and X-ray diffraction outcomes exposed P21, triclinic space group with cell dimensions a = 6.6492(3) Å, b = 16.2440(7) Å, c = 7.8985(3) Å, β = 0.127(2) °, V = 853.11(6) Å3, Z = 2 and possess good agreement with experimental data. Intermolecular interactions were revealed through hirshfeld and major contribution from O-H interaction confirms the presence of intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Through B3LYP algorithm with set 6–311++ G (d, p), chemical reactivity forms and molecular structure of GUPA was investigated, confirming a good stability and hard electrophilic nature. While first order hyperpolarizability value (35.37 × 10−31 esu) was indicative of good nonlinear optical material and hyperconjugate interactions and charge delocalization was further confirmed by natural bond orbitals. To further investigate the electronic properties theoretical (TD-DFT) and experimental absorption wavelengths were compared and excitation energies, oscillator strength and type of electronic transition with contributions have also been studied. The topological properties were evaluated using ELF/LOL maps and RDG with NCI were used to establish the type of interaction present in the GUPA molecular system. The anti-breast cancer effect of GUPA was computationally studied through molecular docking against p53 gene and was further investigated through in vitro MDA-MB-231 cell line studies and GUPA showed better inhibition of cancer cells and their expression.

Tuning Two-Photon Absorption in Rhodopsin Chromophore via Backbone Modification: The Story Told by CC2 and TD-DFT.

We investigate here a systematic way to tune two-photon transition strengths (δ2PA) and two-photon absorption (2PA) cross sections (σ2PA) of the rhodopsin's chromophore 11-cis-retinal protonated Schiff base (RPSB) via the modulation of the methyl groups pattern along its polyene chain. Our team employed the resolution of identity, coupled cluster approximate second order (RI-CC2) method with Dunning's aug-cc-pVDZ basis set, to determine the structural impact on δ2PA, as well as its correlation to both transition dipole moments and permanent electric dipole moments. Seven structures were probed in vacuo, including five-double-bond-conjugated model of the native chromophore, shortened by the β-ionone ring (RPSB5), and its de/methylated analogues: 9-methyl, 13-methyl, planar and twisted models of 9,10-dimethyl and 9,10,13-trimethyl. Our results demonstrate that the magnitude of δ2PA is dictated by both the position and number of methylated groups attached to its polyene chain as well as the degree of dihedral twist that is introduced due to the de/methylation. In fact, a strong correlation between δ2PA enhancement and the presence of a C13-methyl group in the planar RPSB5 species is found. Trends in δ2PA values follow the trends observed in their corresponding changes in the permanent dipole moment upon the S0-S1 excitation nearly exactly. The assessment of four DFT functionals, i.e., M11, MN15, CAM-B3LYP, and BHandHLYP, previously found most successful in predicting 2PA properties in biological chromophores, points to a long-range-corrected hybrid meta-GGA M11 as the top-performing functional, albeit still delivering underestimated δ2PA and σ2PA values by a factor of 3.3-5.3 with respect to the CC2 results. In the case of global-hybrid meta-NGA (MN15), as well as CAM-B3LYP and BHandHLYP functionals, this factor deteriorates significantly to 6.7-20.9 and is mostly related to significantly lower quality of the ground- and excited-state dipole moments.

Ab initio calculations of anomalous seniority breaking in the πg9/2 shell for the N = 50 isotones

We performed ab initio valence-space in-medium similarity renormalization group (VS-IMSRG) calculations based on chiral two-nucleon and three-nucleon interactions to investigate the anomalous seniority breaking in the neutron number N=50 isotones: 92Mo, 94Ru, 96Pd, and 98Cd. Our calculations well reproduced the measured low-lying spectra and electromagnetic E2 transitions in these nuclei, supporting partial seniority conservation in the first πg9/2 shell. Recent experiments have revealed that, compared to the symmetric patterns predicted under the conserved seniority symmetry, the 41+→21+E2 transition strength in 94Ru is significantly enhanced and that in 96Pd is suppressed. In contrast, the 61+→41+ and 81+→61+ transitions exhibit the opposite trend. We found that this anomalous asymmetry is sensitive to subtle seniority breaking effects, providing a stringent test for state-of-the-art nucleon-nucleon interactions and nuclear models. We analyzed the anomalous asymmetry using VS-IMSRG calculations across various valence spaces. Our ab initio results suggest that core excitations of both proton and neutron across the Z=50 shell are ascribed to the observed anomalous seniority breaking in the N=50 isotones.

Split Majoron model confronts the NANOGrav signal and cosmological tensions

In the light of the evidence of a gravitational wave background from the NANOGrav 15 yr dataset, we reconsider the split Majoron model as a new physics extension of the standard model able to generate a needed contribution to solve the current tension between the data and the standard interpretation in terms of inspiraling supermassive black hole massive binaries. In the split Majoron model the seesaw right-handed neutrinos acquire Majorana masses from spontaneous symmetry breaking of global U(1)B−L in a strong first order phase transition of a complex scalar field occurring above the electroweak scale. The final vacuum expectation value couples to a second complex scalar field undergoing a low scale phase transition occurring after neutrino decoupling. Such a coupling enhances the strength of this second low scale first order phase transition and can generate a sizeable primordial gravitational wave background contributing to the NANOGrav 15 yr signal. Some amount of extraradiation is generated after neutron-to-proton ration freeze-out but prior to nucleosynthesis. This can be either made compatible with the current upper bound from primordial deuterium measurements or even be used to solve a potential deuterium problem. Moreover, the free streaming length of light neutrinos can be suppressed by their interactions with the resulting Majoron background, and this mildly ameliorates existing cosmological tensions. Thus cosmological observations nicely provide independent motivations for the model. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Generalized Einstein relations between absorption and emission spectra at thermodynamic equilibrium

We present Einstein coefficient spectra and a detailed-balance derivation of generalized Einstein relations between them that is based on the connection between spontaneous and stimulated emission. If two broadened levels or bands overlap in energy, transitions between them need not be purely absorptive or emissive. Consequently, spontaneous emission can occur in both transition directions, and four Einstein coefficient spectra replace the three Einstein coefficients for a line. At equilibrium, the four different spectra obey five pairwise relationships and one lineshape generates all four. These relationships are independent of molecular quantum statistics and predict the Stokes' shift between forward and reverse transitions required by equilibrium with blackbody radiation. For Boltzmann statistics, the relative strengths of forward and reverse transitions depend on the formal chemical potential difference between the initial and final bands, which becomes the standard chemical potential difference for ideal solutes. The formal chemical potential of a band replaces both the energy and degeneracy of a quantum level. Like the energies of quantum levels, the formal chemical potentials of bands obey the Rydberg-Ritz combination principle. Each stimulated Einstein coefficient spectrum gives a frequency-dependent transition cross-section. Transition cross-sections obey causality and a detailed-balance condition with spontaneous emission, but do not directly obey generalized Einstein relations. Even with an energetic width much less than the photon energy, a predominantly absorptive forward transition with an energetic width much greater than the thermal energy can have such an extreme Stokes' shift that its reverse transition cross-section becomes predominantly absorptive rather than emissive.

Evidence and Structural Insights into a Ligand-Mediated Phase Transition in the Solvated Ligand Shell of Quantum Dots.

As synthesized, nanocrystal surfaces are typically covered in coordinating organic ligands, and the degree of packing and order of these ligands are ongoing questions in the field of colloidal nanocrystals, particularly in the solution state. Recently, isothermal titration calorimetry coupled with 1H NMR has been used to probe ligand exchanges on colloidal quantum dots, revealing the importance of the composition of the ligand shell on exchange thermodynamics. Previous work has shown that the geometry and length of a ligand's aliphatic chain can influence the thermodynamics of exchange. This has been attributed to interligand interactions, and the use of a modified Ising model simulation to account for these collective effects has been critical in describing these reactions. In this report, we explore the reaction between indium phosphide quantum dots and zinc chloride on a size series of nanocrystals capped with two different lengths of aliphatic, straight-chain carboxylate ligands to investigate the effect that nanocrystal size has on these interligand interactions. We demonstrate that interligand interactions increase as the nanocrystal size increases, changing the thermodynamics of the ligand exchange reaction. Critically, we show that a self-consistent model of these ligand exchanges does not fit the data without the use of a phase transition term in the model and that the strength of this phase transition depends on the nanocrystal size. Combined with solution state X-ray diffraction, these results provide indirect evidence that ligands are ordered on nanocrystals in the solution state.

Order of the SU(Nf)×SU(Nf) chiral transition via the functional renormalization group

Renormalization group flows of the SU(Nf)×SU(Nf) symmetric Ginzburg-Landau potential are calculated for a general number of flavors, Nf. Our approach does not rely on the ε expansion, but uses the functional renormalization group, formulated directly in d=3 spatial dimensions, with the inclusion of all possible (perturbatively) relevant and marginal operators, whose number is considerably larger than those in d=4. We find new, potentially infrared stable fixed points spanned throughout the entire Nf range. By conjecturing that the thermal chiral transition is governed by these “flavor continuous” fixed points, stability analyses show that for Nf≥5 the chiral transition is of second order, while for Nf=2, 3, 4, it is of first order. We argue that the UA(1) anomaly controls the strength of the first-order chiral transition for Nf=2, 3, 4, and makes it almost indistinguishable from a second-order one, if it is sufficiently weak at the critical point. This could open up a new strategy to investigate the strength of the UA(1) symmetry breaking around the critical temperature. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Study of the Nuclear Structure Properties in Strontium (90,92,94Sr) Isotopes Using Nuclear Shell-model Calculations

In the current research, various nuclear properties energy spectrum, reduced electromagnetic transition probabilities, nuclear moments, and the distributions of both the nuclear charge and mass density as a function of radial distance from the nucleus center (r) were computed for90,92,94Sr isotopes' using the NuShellX@MSU code. The Skyrme (SLy4) potential was utilized to compute the zirconium isotopes' wave functions with mass numbers 90, 92, and 94. By employing the Gloeckner interaction and bare G-matrix, the computed results showed good agreement with the available experimental information on the aforementioned nuclear features of all the above isotopes. Additionally, the spins and parities of energy levels were confirmed and determined in accordance with certain empirical values. Furthermore an acceptable agreement for transition strengthsB(E2;2_1^+→0_1^+ ) for 90,92,94Sr , and the dipole magnetic moment of the ground state in the90Sr isotope, was observed with the available experimental values. In these calculations, new values were predicted for the above nuclear properties, which had not been previously determined experimentally. KEYWORDS: energy spectra; gloeckner interaction; model space; nuShellX code; skyrme potential; transition strengths

Suppressed electric quadrupole collectivity in 49Ti

Single-step Coulomb excitation of 46,48,49,50Ti is presented. A complete set of E2 matrix elements for the quintuplet of states in 49Ti, centred on the 2+ core excitation, was measured for the first time. A total of nine E2 matrix elements are reported, four of which were previously unknown. 2249Ti27 shows a 20% quenching in electric quadrupole transition strength as compared to its semi-magic 2250Ti28 neighbour. This 20% quenching, while empirically unprecedented, can be explained with a remarkably simple two-state mixing model, which is also consistent with other ground-state properties such as the magnetic dipole moment and electric quadrupole moment. A connection to nucleon transfer data and the quenching of single-particle strength is also demonstrated. The simplicity of the 49Ti-50Ti pair (i.e., approximate single-j0f7/2 valence space and isolation of yrast states from non-yrast states) provides a unique opportunity to disentangle otherwise competing effects in the ground-state properties of atomic nuclei, the emergence of collectivity, and the role of proton-neutron interactions.

Core-excited states in 105Cd

105Cd was produced in the 96Mo+12C fusion/evaporation reaction, performed at NIPNE, Bucharest-Magurele, Romania. Various excited states of positive- and negative-parities were populated. Picosecond half-lives were measured by using the Differential Decay Curve Method (DDCM) method, allowing to control the side feeding of the states of interest. New data were obtained for the half-lives of the 11/2+, 15/2− and 19/2− 105Cd states. Reduced electric quadrupole transition strengths were calculated and compared to the neighboring odd-A and even-A cadmium nuclei. The particle-core weak coupling approach was used to interpret excited states of 105Cd in the light of the new data.

Electromagnetic properties of nuclei from first principles: a case for synergies between experiment and theory.

One of the overarching goals in nuclear science is to understand how the nuclear chart emerges from the underlying fundamental interactions. The description of the structure of nuclei from first principles, using ab initio methods for the solution of the many-nucleon problem with inputs from chiral effective field theory, has advanced dramatically over the past two decades. We present an overview over the available ab initio tools with a specific emphasis on electromagnetic observables, such as multipole moments and transition strengths. These observables still pose a challenge for ab initio theory and are one of the most exciting domains to exploit synergies with modern experiments. Precise experimental data are vital for the validation of the theory predictions and the refinement of ab initio methods. We discuss some of the past and future experimental efforts highlighting these synergies. This article is part of the theme issue 'The liminal position of Nuclear Physics: from hadrons to neutron stars'.

The Impact of Partial Carrier Confinement on Stimulated Emission in Strongly Confined Perovskite Nanocrystals.

Semiconductor lead halide perovskites are excellent candidates for realizing low threshold light amplification due to their tunable and highly efficient luminescence, ease of processing, and strong light-matter interactions. However, most studies on optical gain have addressed bulk films, nanowires, or nanocrystals that exhibit little or no size quantization. Here, we show by means of a multitude of optical spectroscopy methods that small CsPbBr3 nanocrystals (NCs) exhibit a progressive red shift of the band-edge transition upon addition of electron-hole pairs, at least one carrier of which occupies a 2-fold degenerate, delocalized state in agreement with strong confinement. We demonstrate that this combination results in a threshold for biexciton gain, well below the limit of one electron-hole pair on average per NC. On the other hand, both the luminescent lifetime and the optical Stark effect of 4.7 nm CsPbBr3 NCs indicate that the oscillator strength of the band-edge transition is considerably smaller than expected from the band-edge absorption. We assign this discrepancy to a mixed confinement regime, with one delocalized and one localized charge carrier, and show that the concomitant reduction of the oscillator strength for stimulated emission accounts for the surprisingly small material gain observed in small NCs. The conclusion of mixed confinement aligns with studies reporting small and large polarons for holes and electrons in lead halide perovskite nanocrystals, respectively, and creates opportunities for understanding multiexciton photophysics in confined perovskite materials.

‘Online grazing permit’: A review of novel digitalisation procedures of natural resources management projects in Iran

Globally, there is a constant growth in digitalisation and e-services. Their main benefits include higher transparency, reliability and accountability of service providers while strengthening fair competition and collaboration. This article improves upon previous literature by adding a new innovative dimension to natural resources management through digitalisation processes. It also narrates a relatively swift alteration of public policies in response to growing access demands to digital data. Here, we examine one of the well-established Iranian public organisations for natural resources management, called 'Forest, Rangeland and Watershed Management Organisation'. This organisation has shifted its procedures to become a significant electronic service provider within a relatively short period. Given its extended offices, diverse range of activities, and human resources portfolio, it could become a role model for other similar organisations at the national, regional and global levels. This review paper highlights the challenges of forming a national digital-based authority for natural resource management. We will cover a few remarks on such quick transition strengths and failures. The lessons learned can be considered in other similar contexts.

The shape of the Tz = +1 nucleus 94Pd and the role of proton-neutron interactions on the structure of its excited states

Reduced transition probabilities have been extracted between excited, yrast states in the N=Z+2 nucleus 94Pd. The transitions of interest were observed following decays of the Iπ=14+, Ex=2129-keV isomeric state, which was populated following the projectile fragmentation of a 124Xe primary beam at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung accelerator facility as part of FAIR Phase-0. Experimental information regarding the reduced E2 transition strengths for the decays of the yrast 8+ and 6+ states was determined following isomer-delayed Eγ1−Eγ2−△T2,1 coincidence method, using the LaBr3(Ce)-based FATIMA fast-timing coincidence gamma-ray array, which allowed direct determination of lifetimes of states in 94Pd using the Generalized Centroid Difference (GCD) method. The experimental value for the half-life of the yrast 8+ state of 755(106) ps results in a reduced transition probability of B(E2:8→+6+) = 205−25+34 e2fm4, which enables a precise verification of shell-model calculations for this unique system, lying directly between the N=Z line and the N=50 neutron shell closure. The determined B(E2) value provides an insight into the purity of (g9/2)n configurations in competition with admixtures from excitations between the (lower) N=3pf and (higher) N=4gds orbitals for the first time. The results indicate weak collectivity expected for near-zero quadrupole deformation and an increasing importance of the T=0 proton-neutron interaction at N=48.

Impact of a local CP -odd domain in hot QCD on the axionic domain-wall interpretation of NANOGrav 15-year data

We argue that the axionic domain-wall with a QCD bias may be incompatible with the NANOGrav 15-year data on a stochastic gravitational wave (GW) background, when the domain wall network collapses in the hot-quantum chromodynamics (QCD) induced local CP-odd domain. This is due to the drastic suppression of the QCD bias set by the QCD topological susceptibility in the presence of the CP-odd domain with nonzero θ parameter of order one which the QCD sphaleron could generate. We quantify the effect on the GW signals by working on a low-energy effective model of Nambu-Jona-Lasinio type in the mean field approximation. We find that only at θ=π, the QCD bias tends to get significantly large enough due to the criticality of the thermal CP restoration, which would, however, give too big signal strengths to be consistent with the NANOGrav 15-year data and would also be subject to the strength of the phase transition at the criticality. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Magnetic Dipole Transition in ^{48}Ca.

The magnetic dipole transition strength B(M1) of ^{48}Ca is dominated by a single resonant state at an excitation energy of 10.23MeV. Experiments disagree about B(M1) and this impacts our understanding of spin flips in nuclei. We performed abinitio computations based on chiral effective field theory and found that B(M1: 0^{+}→1^{+}) lies in the range from 7.0 to 10.2 μ_{N}^{2}. This is consistent with a (γ,n) experiment but larger than results from (e,e^{'}) and (p,p^{'}) scattering. Two-body currents yield no quenching of the B(M1) strength and continuum effects reduce it by about 10%. For a validation of our approach, we computed magnetic moments in ^{47,49}Ca and performed benchmark calculations in light nuclei.

Transition probabilities and suitable coupling scheme for 6p→6s transition array of neutral xenon using hollow cathode discharge lamp technique

In the present work, analyses have been performed to determine spectroscopic parameters, including transition probabilities, and relative line strengths of discharge-produced xenon plasma. We present the transition probabilities of twenty-three emission lines originating from the 5p56p →5p56s transition array of neutral xenon covering the wavelength range from 450 to 1100 nm using a xenon-filled hollow cathode discharge lamp. The experimental absolute transition probabilities have been measured by combining the reported lifetimes of upper levels with the integrated spectral intensities of xenon transitions. The results agree well with the reported data in the NIST database, where available. The theoretical line strengths for all spectral transitions originating from the 5p56p→5p56s transition array have been calculated in the LS, LK, jj, and jck coupling schemes using the 3j, 6j, and 9j symbol relations. Furthermore, the normalized experimental line strengths have also been measured and compared with theoretical line strengths, which confirm that the jj and jck coupling scheme is more appropriate for the level designation of xenon.