Szilner, S. et al, & Gadea, A. (2011). Interplay between single-particle and collective excitations in argon isotopes populated by transfer reactions. Phys. Rev. C, 84(1), 014325–7pp.
Abstract: New gamma transitions have been identified in argon isotopes in (40)Ar + (208)Pb multiple transfer reactions by exploiting, in a fragment-gamma measurement, the new generation of magnetic spectrometers based on trajectory reconstruction coupled to large gamma arrays. The coupling of single-particle degrees of freedom to nuclear vibration quanta was discussed. The interpretation of the newly observed states within a particle-phonon coupling picture was used to consistently follow, via their excitation energies, the evolution of collectivity in odd Ar isotopes. The proposed level schemes are supported by the results of sd-pf shell-model calculations, which have been also employed to evaluate the strength functions of the populated states.
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Morales, A. I. et al, Agramunt, J., Algora, A., Gadea, A., Molina, F., & Rubio, B. (2011). Synthesis of N=127 isotones through (p,n) charge-exchange reactions induced by relativistic (208)Pb projectiles. Phys. Rev. C, 84(1), 011601–5pp.
Abstract: The production cross sections of four N = 127 isotones ((207)Hg, (206)Au, (205)Pt, and (204)Ir) have been measured using (p,n) charge-exchange reactions, induced in collisions of a (208)Pb primary beam at 1 A GeV with a Be target. These data allow one to investigate the use of a reaction mechanism to extend the limits of the chart of nuclides toward the important r-process nuclei in the region of the third peak of elemental abundance distribution.
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Dijon, A. et al, & Gadea, A. (2011). Lifetime measurements in Co-63 and Co-65. Phys. Rev. C, 83(6), 064321–7pp.
Abstract: Lifetimes of the 9/2(1)(-) and 3/2(1)(-) states in Co-63 and the 9/2(1)(-) state in Co-65 were measured using the recoil distance Doppler shift and the differential decay curve methods. The nuclei were populated by multinucleon transfer reactions in inverse kinematics. gamma rays were measured with the EXOGAM Ge array and the recoiling fragments were fully identified using the large-acceptance VAMOS spectrometer. The E2 transition probabilities from the 3/2(1)(-) and 9/2(1)(-) states to the 7/2(-) ground state could be extracted in Co-63 as well as an upper limit for the 9/2(1)(-) -> 7/2(1)(-) B(E2) value in Co-65. The experimental results were compared to large-scale shell-model calculations in the pf and pfg(9/2) model spaces, allowing us to draw conclusions on the single-particle or collective nature of the various states.
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AGATA Collaboration(Soderstrom, P. A. et al), & Gadea, A. (2011). Interaction position resolution simulations and in-beam measurements of the AGATA HPGe detectors. Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. A, 638(1), 96–109.
Abstract: The interaction position resolution of the segmented HPGe detectors of an AGATA triple cluster detector has been studied through Monte Carlo simulations and in an in-beam experiment. A new method based on measuring the energy resolution of Doppler-corrected gamma-ray spectra at two different target to detector distances is described. This gives the two-dimensional position resolution in the plane perpendicular to the direction of the emitted gamma-ray. The gamma-ray tracking was used to determine the full energy of the gamma-rays and the first interaction point, which is needed for the Doppler correction. Five different heavy-ion induced fusion-evaporation reactions and a reference reaction were selected for the simulations. The results of the simulations show that the method works very well and gives a systematic deviation of <1 mm in the FVVHM of the interaction position resolution for the gamma-ray energy range from 60 keV to 5 MeV. The method was tested with real data from an in-beam measurement using a (30)5i beam at 64 MeV on a thin C-12 target. Pulse-shape analysis of the digitized detector waveforms and gamma-ray tracking was performed to determine the position of the first interaction point, which was used for the Doppler corrections. Results of the dependency of the interaction position resolution on the gamma-ray energy and on the energy, axial location and type of the first interaction point, are presented. The FVVHM of the interaction position resolution varies roughly linearly as a function of gamma-ray energy from 8.5 mm at 250 key to 4 mm at 1.5 MeV, and has an approximately constant value of about 4 mm in the gamma-ray energy range from 1.5 to 4 MeV.
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Montanari, D., Farnea, E., Leoni, S., Pollarolo, G., Corradi, L., Benzoni, G., et al. (2011). Response function of the magnetic spectrometer PRISMA. Eur. Phys. J. A, 47(1), 4–7pp.
Abstract: The response function of the magnetic spectrometer PRISMA is studied via a Monte Carlo simulation that employs a ray tracing code to determine the trajectories of individual rays through the electromagnetic fields. The calculated response is tested on angular and energy distributions provided by theoretical calculations for the Ca-48 + Ni-64 multinucleon transfer reaction and applied to the corresponding experimental data.
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Montanari, D. et al, & Gadea, A. (2011). Probing the nature of particle-core couplings in Ca-49 with gamma spectroscopy and heavy-ion transfer reactions. Phys. Lett. B, 697(4), 288–293.
Abstract: Neutron rich nuclei around Ca-48 have been measured with the CLARA-PRISMA setup, making use of Ca-48 on Ni-64 binary reactions, at 5.9 MeV/A. Angular distributions of gamma rays give evidence, in several transfer channels, for a large spin alignment (approximate to 70%) perpendicular to the reaction plane, making it possible to firmly establish spin and parities of the excited states. In the case of Ca-49, states arising from different types of particle-core couplings are, for the first time, unambiguously identified on basis of angular distribution, polarization and lifetime measurements. Shell model and particle-vibration coupling calculations are used to pin down the nature of the states. Evidence is found for the presence, in the same excitation energy region, of two types of coupled states, i.e. single particle coupled to either Ca-48 or Ca-50 simple configurations, and particle-vibration coupled states based on the 3- phonon of Ca-48.
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Cederwall, B. et al, Algora, A., & Gadea, A. (2011). Evidence for a spin-aligned neutron-proton paired phase from the level structure of Pd-92. Nature, 469(7328), 68–71.
Abstract: Shell structure and magic numbers in atomic nuclei were generally explained by pioneering work(1) that introduced a strong spin-orbit interaction to the nuclear shell model potential. However, knowledge of nuclear forces and the mechanisms governing the structure of nuclei, in particular far from stability, is still incomplete. In nuclei with equal neutron and proton numbers (N = Z), enhanced correlations arise between neutrons and protons (two distinct types of fermions) that occupy orbitals with the same quantum numbers. Such correlations have been predicted to favour an unusual type of nuclear superfluidity, termed isoscalar neutron-proton pairing(2-6), in addition to normal isovector pairing. Despite many experimental efforts, these predictions have not been confirmed. Here we report the experimental observation of excited states in the N = Z = 46 nucleus Pd-92. Gamma rays emitted following the Ni-58(Ar-36,2n)Pd-92 fusion-evaporation reaction were identified using a combination of state-of-the-art high-resolution c-ray, charged-particle and neutron detector systems. Our results reveal evidence for a spin-aligned, isoscalar neutron-proton coupling scheme, different from the previous prediction(2-6). We suggest that this coupling scheme replaces normal superfluidity (characterized by seniority coupling(7,8)) in the ground and low-lying excited states of the heaviest N = Z nuclei. Such strong, isoscalar neutron-proton correlations would have a considerable impact on the nuclear level structure and possibly influence the dynamics of rapid proton capture in stellar nucleosynthesis.
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Bizzeti, P. G. et al, & Gadea, A. (2010). Transition probabilities in the X(5) candidate Ba-122. Phys. Rev. C, 82(5), 054311–10pp.
Abstract: To investigate the possible X(5) character of Ba-122, suggested by the ground-state band energy pattern, the lifetimes of the lowest yrast states of Ba-122 have been measured, via the recoil distance Doppler-shift method. The relevant levels have been populated by using the Cd-108(O-16,2n)Ba-122 and the Sn-112(C-13, 3n)Ba-122 reactions. The B(E2) values deduced in the present work are compared to the predictions of the X(5) model and to calculations performed in the framework of the IBA-1 and IBA-2 models.
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AGATA Collaboration, Doncel, M., Recchia, F., Quintana, B., Gadea, A., & Farnea, E. (2010). Experimental test of the background rejection, through imaging capability, of a highly segmented AGATA germanium detector. Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. A, 622(3), 614–618.
Abstract: The development of highly segmented germanium detectors as well as the algorithms to identify the position of the interaction within the crystal opens the possibility to locate the gamma-ray source using Compton imaging algorithms. While the Compton-suppression shield, coupled to the germanium detector in conventional arrays, works also as an active filter against the gamma rays originated outside the target, the new generation of position sensitive gamma-ray detector arrays has to fully rely on tracking capabilities for this purpose. In specific experimental conditions, as the ones foreseen at radioactive beam facilities, the ability to discriminate background radiation improves the sensitivity of the gamma spectrometer. In this work we present the results of a measurement performed at the Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro (LNL) aiming the evaluation of the AGATA detector capabilities to discriminate the origin of the gamma rays on an event-by-event basis. It will be shown that, exploiting the Compton scattering formula, it is possible to track back gamma rays coming from different positions, assigning them to specific emitting locations. These imaging capabilities are quantified for a single crystal AGATA detector.
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Broda, R. et al, & Gadea, A. (2010). Proton-hole states in the N=30 neutron-rich isotope K-49. Phys. Rev. C, 82(3), 034319–7pp.
Abstract: Excited states in the N = 30 neutron-rich isotope K-49 have been studied using multinucleon transfer reactions with thin targets and the PRISMA-CLARA spectrometer combined with thick-target gamma-coincidence data from Gammasphere. The d(3/2) proton-hole state is located 92 keV above the s(1/2) ground state, and the proton-particle f(7/2) state is suggested at 2104 keV. Three other levels are established as involving the coupling to 2(+) of two neutrons above the N = 28 shell. The measured or estimated lifetimes served to reinforce the interpretation of the observed level structure, which is found to be in satisfactory agreement with shell-model calculations.
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