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C. A. Ur

Publications and source records attributed to C. A. Ur.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
arXiv2013

Results on neutrinoless double beta decay of 76Ge from GERDA Phase I

Neutrinoless double beta decay is a process that violates lepton number conservation. It is predicted to occur in extensions of the Standard Model of particle physics. This Letter reports the results from Phase I of the GERmanium Detector Array (GERDA) experiment at the Gran Sasso Laboratory (Italy) searching for neutrinoless double beta decay of the isotope 76Ge. Data considered in the present analysis have been collected between November 2011 and May 2013 with a total exposure of 21.6 kgyr. A blind analysis is performed. The background index is about 1.10^{-2} cts/(keV kg yr) after pulse shape discrimination. No signal is observed and a lower limit is derived for the half-life of neutrinoless double beta decay of 76Ge, T_1/2 > 2.1 10^{25} yr (90% C.L.). The combination with the results from the previous experiments with 76Ge yields T_1/2 > 3.0 10^{25} yr (90% C.L.).

nucl-ex↗
arXiv2013

Pulse shape discrimination for GERDA Phase I data

The GERDA experiment located at the LNGS searches for neutrinoless double beta (0νββ) decay of ^{76}Ge using germanium diodes as source and detector. In Phase I of the experiment eight semi-coaxial and five BEGe type detectors have been deployed. The latter type is used in this field of research for the first time. All detectors are made from material with enriched ^{76}Ge fraction. The experimental sensitivity can be improved by analyzing the pulse shape of the detector signals with the aim to reject background events. This paper documents the algorithms developed before the data of Phase I were unblinded. The double escape peak (DEP) and Compton edge events of 2.615 MeV γ rays from ^{208}Tl decays as well as 2νββ decays of ^{76}Ge are used as proxies for 0νββ decay. For BEGe detectors the chosen selection is based on a single pulse shape parameter. It accepts 0.92$\pm$0.02 of signal-like events while about 80% of the background events at Q_{ββ}=2039 keV are rejected. For semi-coaxial detectors three analyses are developed. The one based on an artificial neural network is used for the search of 0νββ decay. It retains 90% of DEP events and rejects about half of the events around Q_{ββ}. The 2νββ events have an efficiency of 0.85\pm0.02 and the one for 0νββ decays is estimated to be 0.90^{+0.05}_{-0.09}. A second analysis uses a likelihood approach trained on Compton edge events. The third approach uses two pulse shape parameters. The latter two methods confirm the classification of the neural network since about 90% of the data events rejected by the neural network are also removed by both of them. In general, the selection efficiency extracted from DEP events agrees well with those determined from Compton edge events or from 2νββ decays.

physics.ins-det↗
arXiv2012

Measurement of the half-life of the two-neutrino double beta decay of Ge-76 with the Gerda experiment

The primary goal of the GERmanium Detector Array (Gerda) experiment at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso of INFN is the search for the neutrinoless double beta decay of Ge-76. High-purity germanium detectors made from material enriched in Ge-76 are operated directly immersed in liquid argon, allowing for a substantial reduction of the background with respect to predecessor experiments. The first 5.04 kg yr of data collected in Phase I of the experiment have been analyzed to measure the half-life of the neutrino-accompanied double beta decay of Ge-76. The observed spectrum in the energy range between 600 and 1800 keV is dominated by the double beta decay of Ge-76. The half-life extracted from Gerda data is T(1/2) = (1.84 +0.14 -0.10) 10^{21} yr.

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arXiv2012

High-spin structure in $^{40}$K

High-spin states of $^{40}$K have been populated in the fusion-evaporation reaction $^{12}$C($^{30}$Si,np)$^{40}$K and studied by means of $γ$-ray spectroscopy techniques using one AGATA triple cluster detector, at INFN - Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro. Several new states with excitation energy up to 8 MeV and spin up to $10^-$ have been discovered. These new states are discussed in terms of J=3 and T=0 neutron-proton hole pairs. Shell-model calculations in a large model space have shown a good agreement with the experimental data for most of the energy levels. The evolution of the structure of this nucleus is here studied as a function of excitation energy and angular momentum.

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arXiv2012

Response of AGATA Segmented HPGe Detectors to Gamma Rays up to 15.1 MeV

The response of AGATA segmented HPGe detectors to gamma rays in the energy range 2-15 MeV was measured. The 15.1 MeV gamma rays were produced using the reaction d(11B,ng)12C at Ebeam = 19.1 MeV, while gamma-rays between 2 to 9 MeV were produced using an Am-Be-Fe radioactive source. The energy resolution and linearity were studied and the energy-to-pulse-height conversion resulted to be linear within 0.05%. Experimental interaction multiplicity distributions are discussed and compared with the results of Geant4 simulations. It is shown that the application of gamma-ray tracking allows a suppression of background radiation following neutron capture by Ge nuclei. Finally the Doppler correction for the 15.1 MeV gamma line, performed using the position information extracted with Pulse-shape Analysis, is discussed.

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arXiv2011

Signal modeling of high-purity Ge detectors with a small read-out electrode and application to neutrinoless double beta decay search in Ge-76

The GERDA experiment searches for the neutrinoless double beta decay of Ge-76 using high-purity germanium detectors enriched in Ge-76. The analysis of the signal time structure provides a powerful tool to identify neutrinoless double beta decay events and to discriminate them from gamma-ray induced backgrounds. Enhanced pulse shape discrimination capabilities of "Broad Energy Germanium" detectors with a small read-out electrode have been recently reported. This paper describes the full simulation of the response of such a detector, including the Monte Carlo modeling of radiation interaction and subsequent signal shape calculation. A pulse shape discrimination method based on the ratio between the maximum current signal amplitude and the event energy applied to the simulated data shows quantitative agreement with the experimental data acquired with calibration sources. The simulation has been used to study the survival probabilities of the decays which occur inside the detector volume and are difficult to assess experimentally. Such internal decay events are produced by the cosmogenic radio-isotopes Ge-68 and Co-60 and the neutrinoless double beta decay of Ge-76. Fixing the experimental acceptance of the double escape peak of the 2.614 MeV photon to 90%, the estimated survival probabilities at Qbb = 2.039 MeV are (86+-3)% for Ge-76 neutrinoless double beta decays, (4.5+-0.3)% for the Ge-68 daughter Ga-68, and (0.9+0.4-0.2)% for Co-60 decays.

physics.ins-det↗
arXiv2011

Characterization of a broad energy germanium detector and application to neutrinoless double beta decay search in Ge-76

The performance of a 630g commercial broad energy germanium (BEGe) detector has been systematically investigated. Energy resolution, linearity, stability vs. high-voltage (HV) bias, thickness and uniformity of dead layers have been measured and found to be excellent. Special attention has been dedicated to the study of the detector response as a function of bias HV. The nominal depletion voltage being 3000V, the detector under investigation shows a peculiar behavior for biases around 2000V: in a narrow range of about 100V the charge collection is strongly reduced. The detector seems to be composed by two parts: a small volume around the HV contact where charges are efficiently collected as at higher voltage, and a large volume where charges are poorly collected. A qualitative explanation of this behavior is presented. An event-by-event pulse shape analysis based on A/E (maximum amplitude of the current pulse over the total energy released in the detector) has been applied to events in different energy regions and found very effective in rejecting non localized events. In conclusion, BEGe detectors are excellent candidates for the second phase of GERDA, an experiment devoted to neutrinoless double beta decay of Ge-76.

physics.ins-det↗
arXiv2010

Transition probabilities in the X(5) candidate $^{122}$Ba

To investigate the possible X(5) character of 122Ba, suggested by the ground state band energy pattern, the lifetimes of the lowest yrast states of 122Ba have been measured, via the Recoil Distance Doppler-Shift method. The relevant levels have been populated by using the 108Cd(16O,2n)122Ba and the 112Sn(13C,3n)122Ba 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.

nucl-ex↗
arXiv2010

Observation of isotonic symmetry for enhanced quadrupole collectivity in neutron-rich 62,64,66Fe isotopes at N=40

The transition rates for the 2_{1}^{+} states in 62,64,66Fe were studied using the Recoil Distance Doppler-Shift technique applied to projectile Coulomb excitation reactions. The deduced E2 strengths illustrate the enhanced collectivity of the neutron-rich Fe isotopes up to N=40. The results are interpreted by the generalized concept of valence proton symmetry which describes the evolution of nuclear structure around N=40 as governed by the number of valence protons with respect to Z~30. The deformation suggested by the experimental data is reproduced by state-of-the-art shell calculations with a new effective interaction developed for the fpgd valence space.

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arXiv2009

Spectroscopy of Neutron-Rich 168,170Dy: Yrast Band Evolution Close to the NpNn Valence Maximum

The yrast sequence of the neutron-rich dysprosium isotope 168Dy has been studied using multi-nucleon transfer reactions following collisions between a 460-MeV 82Se beam and a 170Er target. The reaction products were identified using the PRISMA magnetic spectrometer and the gamma rays detected using the CLARA HPGe-detector array. The 2+ and 4+ members of the previously measured ground state rotational band of 168Dy have been confirmed and the yrast band extended up to 10+. A tentative candidate for the 4+ to 2+ transition in 170Dy was also identified. The data on these nuclei and on the lighter even-even dysprosium isotopes are interpreted in terms of Total Routhian Surface calculations and the evolution of collectivity in the vicinity of the proton-neutron valence product maximum is discussed.

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arXiv2007

Multinucleon transfer reactions in closed-shell nuclei

Multinucleon transfer reactions in 40Ca+96Zr and 90Zr+208Pb have been measured at energies close to the Coulomb barrier in a high resolution gamma-particle coincidence experiment. The large solid angle magnetic spectrometer PRISMA coupled to the CLARA gamma-array has been employed. Trajectory reconstruction has been applied for the complete identification of transfer products. Mass and charge yields, total kinetic energy losses, gamma transitions of the binary reaction partners, and comparison of data with semiclassical calculations are reported. Specific transitions in 95Zr populated in one particle transfer channels are discussed in terms of particle-phonon couplings. The gamma decays from states in 42Ca in the excitation energy region expected from pairing vibrations are also observed.

nucl-ex↗
arXiv2004

Shell-model description of N ~ Z 1f7/2 nuclei

For natural parity states of several odd-A nuclei a comparison of shell model calculations in the full pf configuration space with the Nilsson diagram and particle-rotor predictions shows that prolate strong coupling applies at low excitation energy, revealing multi-quasiparticle rotational bands and, in some cases, bandcrossings. Moreover, ground state bands experience a change from collective to non-collective regime, approaching the termination. Similar features are observed in the even-even nuclei. In the even-even N=Z nuclei evidence of the vibrational gamma-band is found. A review of non-natural parity structures is furthermore presented.

nucl-th↗
arXiv2002

Transition rates and nuclear structure changes in mirror nuclei 47Cr and 47V

Lifetime measurements in the mirror nuclei 47Cr and 47V were performed by means of the Doppler-shift attenuation method using the multidetector array EUROBALL, in conjunction with the ancillary detectors ISIS and the Neutron Wall. The determined transition strengths in the yrast cascades are well described by full pf shell model calculations.

nucl-ex↗
arXiv1999

Band termination in the N=Z Odd-Odd Nucleus 46V

High spin states in the odd-odd N=Z nucleus 46V have been identified. At low spin, the T=1 isobaric analogue states of 46Ti are established up to I = 6+. Other high spin states, including the band terminating state, are tentatively assigned to the same T=1 band. The T=0 band built on the low-lying 3+ isomer is observed up to the 1f7/2-shell termination at I=15. Both signatures of a negative parity T=0 band are observed up to the terminating states at I = 16- and I = 17-, respectively. The structure of this band is interpreted as a particle-hole excitation from the 1d3/2 shell. Spherical shell model calculations are found to be in excellent agreement with the experimental results.

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arXiv1997

Excited States in 52Fe and the Origin of the Yrast Trap at I=12+

Excited states in 52Fe have been determined up to spin 10\hbar in the reaction 28Si + 28Si at 115 MeV by using γ-ray spectroscopy methods at the GASP array. The excitation energy of the yrast 10+ state has been determined to be 7.381 MeV, almost 0.5 MeV above the well known β+-decaying yrast 12+ state, definitely confirming the nature of its isomeric character. The mean lifetimes of the states have been measured by using the Doppler Shift Attenuation method. The experimental data are compared with spherical shell model calculations in the full pf-shell.

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