arXiv subjects

K. Ishikawa

Publications and source records attributed to K. Ishikawa.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Gamma-Ray and AntiMatter Survey(GRAMS) experiment

The Gamma-Ray and AntiMatter Survey (GRAMS) is a next-generation experiment using a Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) detector to measure MeV gamma rays and antiparticles. MeV gamma-ray observations are important for understanding multi-messenger and time-domain astronomy, enabling exploration of the universe's most potent events, such as supernovae and neutron star mergers. Despite the significance of MeV gamma-rays, GRAMS could also explore the so-called 'MeV gap' region to improve MeV gamma-ray measurement sensitivity that was restricted by the challenge of accurately reconstructing Compton events. Aside from gamma-ray detection, the GRAMS proposed method also serves as an antiparticle spectrometer, targeting the low-energy range of cosmic antinuclei measurements. This work will provide updates on the current status and progress towards the prototype balloon flight with a small-scale LArTPC (pGRAMS) scheduled for early 2026, as well as the recent progress on antihelium-3 sensitivity calculation.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2025

A XRISM/Resolve view of the dynamics in the hot gaseous atmosphere of M87

The XRISM/Resolve microcalorimeter directly measured the gas velocities in the core of the Virgo Cluster, the closest example of AGN feedback in a cluster. This proximity allows us to resolve the kinematic impact of feedback on scales down to 5 kpc. Our spectral analysis reveals a high velocity dispersion of $\sigma_v$=262 (+45 / -38) km/s near the AGN, which steeply declines to ~60 km/s between 5 and 25 kpc in the northwest direction. The observed line-of-sight bulk velocity in all regions is broadly consistent with the central galaxy, M87, with a mild trend toward blueshifted motions at larger radii. Systematic uncertainties have been carefully assessed and do not affect the measurements. The central velocities, if attributed entirely to isotropic turbulence, correspond to a transonic ICM at sub-6 kpc scales with three-dimensional Mach number 0.69 (+0.14 / -0.11) and a non-thermal pressure fraction of 21 (+7 / -5)%. Simple models of weak shocks and sound waves and calculations assuming isotropic turbulence both support the hypothesis that the velocity field reflects a mix of shock-driven expansion and turbulence. Compared to other clusters observed by XRISM to date, M87's central region stands out as the most kinematically disturbed, exhibiting both the highest velocity dispersion and the largest 3D Mach number, concentrated at the smallest physical scales.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Antihelium-3 Sensitivity for the GRAMS Experiment

The Gamma-Ray and AntiMatter Survey (GRAMS) is a next-generation balloon/satellite mission utilizing a Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) detector to measure both MeV gamma rays and antinuclei produced by dark matter annihilation or decay. The GRAMS can identify antihelium-3 events based on the measurements of X-rays and charged pions from the decay of the exotic atoms, Time of Flight (TOF), energy deposition, and stopping range. This paper shows the antihelium-3 sensitivity estimation using a GEANT4 Monte Carlo simulation. For the proposed long-duration balloon (LDB) flight program (35 days $ \times $ 3 flights) and future satellite mission (2-year observation / 10-year observation), the sensitivities become 1.47 $\times$ 10$^{-7}$ [m$^2$ s sr GeV/n]$^{-1}$ and 1.55 $\times$ 10$^{-9}$ [m$^2$ s sr GeV/n]$^{-1}$ / $3.10\times10^{-10}$ [m$^2$ s sr GeV/n]$^{-1}$, respectively. The results indicate that GRAMS can extensively investigate various dark matter models through the antihelium-3 measurements.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2024

First operation of LArTPC in the stratosphere as an engineering GRAMS balloon flight (eGRAMS)

GRAMS (Gamma-Ray and AntiMatter Survey) is a next-generation balloon/satellite experiment utilizing a LArTPC (Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber), to simultaneously target astrophysical observations of cosmic MeV gamma-rays and conduct an indirect dark matter search using antimatter. While LArTPCs are widely used in particle physics experiments, they have never been operated at balloon altitudes. An engineering balloon flight with a small-scale LArTPC (eGRAMS) was conducted on July 27th, 2023, to establish a system for safely operating a LArTPC at balloon altitudes and to obtain cosmic-ray data from the LArTPC. The flight was launched from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Taiki Aerospace Research Field in Hokkaido, Japan. The total flight duration was 3 hours and 12 minutes, including a level flight of 44 minutes at a maximum altitude of 28.9 km. The flight system was landed on the sea and successfully recovered. The LArTPC was successfully operated throughout the flight, and about 0.5 million events of the cosmic-ray data including muons, protons, and Compton scattering gamma-ray candidates, were collected. This pioneering flight demonstrates the feasibility of operating a LArTPC in high-altitude environments, paving the way for future GRAMS missions and advancing our capabilities in MeV gamma-ray astronomy and dark matter research.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

Transformation of polar nematic phases in the presence of electric field

Only a few years have passed since discovery of polar nematics, and now they are becoming the most actively studied liquid crystal materials. Despite numerous breakthrough findings made recently, a theoretical systematization is still lacking. In the present paper we are making a step on the way of systematization. A powerful technique that molecular-statistical physics is has been applied to an assembly of polar molecules influenced by electric field. Totally, the three polar nematic phases were found to be stable at various conditions: the double-splay ferroelectric nematic $N_F^{2D}$ (observed in the lower-temperature range in the absence or at low electric field), the double-splay antiferroelectric nematic $N_{AF}$ (observed at intermediate temperature in the absence or at low electric field) and the single-splay ferroelectric nematic $N_F^{1D}$ (observed at moderate electric field at any temperature below transition into paraelectric nematic $N$ and in the higher-temperature range (also below $N$) at low electric field or without it. A paradoxal transition from $N_F^{1D}$ to $N$ induced by application of higher electric field has been found and explained. A transformation of the structure of polar nematic phases at application of electric field has also been investigated by Monte Carlo simulations and experimentally by observation of POM images. In particular, it has been realized that, at planar anchoring, $N_{AF}$ in the presence of moderate out-of-plane electric field exhibits the twofold splay modulation: antiferroelectric in the plane of the substrate and ferroelectric in the plane normal to the substrate. Several additional sub-transitions related to fitting confined geometry of the cell by the structure of polar phases were detected.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2023

Decay Pattern of Pygmy States Observed in Neutron-Rich 26 Ne

Coulomb excitation of the exotic neutron-rich nucleus Ne26 on a Pb208 target was measured at 58 MeV/u in order to search for low-lying E1 strength above the neutron emission threshold. This radioactive beam experiment was carried out at the RIKEN Accelerator Research Facility. Using the invariant mass method in the Ne25+n channel, we observe a sizable amount of E1 strength between 6 and 10 MeV excitation energy. By performing a multipole decomposition of the differential cross section, a reduced dipole transition probability of B(E1)=0.49+-0.16e2fm2 is deduced, corresponding to 4.9+-1.6% of the Thomas-Reiche-Kuhn sum rule. For the first time, the decay pattern of low-lying strength in a neutron-rich nucleus is measured. The extracted decay pattern is not consistent with several mean-field theory descriptions of the pygmy states.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2022

Cr doping-induced ferromagnetism in the spin-glass Cd1-xMnxTe studied by x-ray magnetic circular dichroism

The prototypical diluted magnetic semiconductor Cd1-xMnxTe is a spin glass (x<0.6) or an antiferromagnet (x>0.6), but becomes ferromagnetic upon doping with a small amount of Cr atoms substituting for Mn. In order to investigate the origin of the ferromagnetism in Cd1-x-yMnxCryTe, we have studied its element specific magnetic properties by x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) at the Cr and Mn L2,3 edges. Thin films were grown by molecular beam epitaxy with a fixed Mn content of x = 0.2 and varying Cr content in the range of y = 0 - 0.04. Measured XAS and XMCD spectra indicate that both Cr and Mn atoms are divalent and that the ferromagnetic or superparamagnetic components of Cr and Mn are aligned in the same directions. The magnetization of Mn increases with increasing Cr content. These results can be explained if ferromagnetic interaction exists between neighboring Mn and Cr ions although interaction between Mn atoms is largely antiferromagnetic. We conclude that each ferromagnetic or superparamagnetic cluster consists of ferromagnetically coupled several Cr and a much larger number of Mn ions.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2020

Search for the correction term to the Fermi's golden rule in positron annihilation

In the positron-electron annihilation process, finite deviations from the standard calculation based on the Fermi's Golden rule are suggested in recent theoretical work. This paper describes an experimental test of the predictions of this theoretical work by searching for events with two photons from positron annihilation of energy larger than the electron rest mass ($511\,{\rm keV}$). The positrons came from a ${\rm {}^{22}Na}$ source, tagging the third photon from the spontaneous emission of ${\rm {}^{22}{Ne}^*}$ de-exitation to suppress backgrounds. Using the collected sample of $1.06\times 10^{7}$ positron-electron annihilations, triple coincidence photon events in the signal enhanced energy regions are examined. The observed number of events in two signal regions, $N^{\rm SR1}_{\rm obs}=0$ and $N^{\rm SR2}_{\rm obs}=0$ are, within a current precision, consistent with the expected number of events, $N^{\rm SR1}_{\rm exp}=0.86\pm0.08({\rm stat.})^{+1.85}_{-0.81}({\rm syst.})$ and $N^{\rm SR2}_{\rm exp}=0.37\pm 0.05({\rm stat.})^{+0.80}_{-0.29}({\rm syst.})$ from Fermi's golden rule respectively. Based on the $P^{(d)}$ modeling, the 90% CL lower limit on the photon wave packet size is obtained.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

ASTRO-H White Paper - New Spectral Features

This white paper addresses selected new (to X-ray astronomy) physics and data analysis issues that will impact ASTRO-H SWG observations as a result of its high-spectral-resolution X-ray microcalorimeter, the focussing hard X-ray optics and corresponding detectors, and the low background soft gamma-ray detector. We concentrate on issues of atomic and nuclear physics, including basic bound-bound and bound-free transitions as well as scattering and radiative transfer. The major topic categories include the physics of charge exchange, solar system X-ray sources, advanced spectral model, radiative transfer, and hard X-ray emission lines and sources.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2011

Long-range spatial correlation of neutrino in pion decay

Position-dependent property of the neutrino produced in high-energy pion decay is studied theoretically using a wave packet formalism. It is found that the neutrino probability has a universal finite-distance correction if the pion has a long coherence length. This correction has origins in the interference of the neutrino that is caused by the small neutrino mass and a light-cone singularity of the pion and muon system. This term is positive definite and leads excess to the neutrino flux over the in-coherent value at macroscopic distance of near detector region. The flux decreases slowly with distance in a universal manner that is determined by the absolute value of the neutrino mass and energy. Absolute value of the neutrino mass is expected to be measured indirectly from the neutrino detection probability at finite distance.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2011

Effect of co-doping of donor and acceptor impurities in the ferromagnetic semiconductor Zn1-xCrxTe studied by soft x-ray magnetic circular dichroism

We have performed x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) studies of the diluted ferromagnetic semiconductor Zn$_{1-\textit{x}}$Cr$_\textit{x}$Te doped with iodine (I) or nitrogen (N), corresponding to electron or hole doping, respectively. From the shape of the Cr $2p$ absorption peak in the XAS spectra, it was concluded that Cr ions in the undoped, I-doped and lightly N-doped samples are divalent (Cr$^{2+}$), while Cr$^{2+}$ and trivalent (Cr$^{3+}$) coexist in the heavily N-doped sample. This result indicates that the doped nitrogen atoms act as acceptors but that doped holes are located on the Cr ions. In the magnetic-field dependence of the XMCD signal at the Cr $2p$ absorption edge, ferromagnetic behaviors were observed in the undoped, I-doped, and lightly N-doped samples, while ferromagnetism was considerably suppressed in heavily N-doped sample, which is consistent with the results of magnetization measurements.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2010

Macroscopic Interferences of Neutrino Waves

Interference phenomena of neutrinos are studied. High energy neutrino in T2K near detector and low energy neutrino in KamLAND are possible experiments that could show macroscopic interferences of neutrino waves. In both experiments interference patterns may give new insights on the absolute value of the neutrino mass.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2010

On coherence lengths of wave packets II : High energy neutrino

In this second paper of the series on the coherence of wave packets, we study neutrinos in high energy experiments where neutrinos are produced by decays of pions or muons which are described using wave packets. The space time position where one neutrino is produced is not fixed to one value but is extended in macroscopic area. Hence the amplitude is defined by a superposition of the amplitudes of different neutrino's production time in the macroscopic region and depends on the absolute value of the neutrino mass. We analyze neutrino interference based on operator product expansion near the light cone and find a new universal term in the time dependent neutrino probability. This new term has an origin in higher order quantum effect in a similar manner as axial anomaly. Roles of Lorentz invariance and the operator product expansion in the light-cone region are clarified and a possibility of measuring the absolute value of neutrino mass from neutrino interference experiments is pointed out.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2009

High-speed charge-to-time converter ASIC for the Super-Kamiokande detector

A new application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), the high-speed charge-to-time converter (QTC) IWATSU CLC101, provides three channels, each consisting of preamplifier, discriminator, low-pass filter, and charge integration circuitry, optimized for the waveform of a photomultiplier tube (PMT). This ASIC detects PMT signals using individual built-in discriminators and drives output timing signals whose width represents the integrated charge of the PMT signal. Combined with external input circuits composed of passive elements, the QTC provides full analog signal processing for the detector's PMTs, ready for further processing by time-to-digital converters (TDCs). High-rate (>1MHz) signal processing is achieved by short-charge-conversion-time and baseline-restoration circuits. Wide-range charge measurements are enabled by offering three gain ranges while maintaining a short cycle time. QTC chip test results show good analog performance, with efficient detection for a single photoelectron signal, four orders of magnitude dynamic range (0:3mV ~ 3V; 0:2 ~ 2500 pC), 1% charge linearity, 0.2 pC charge resolution, and 0.1 ns timing resolution. Test results on ambient temperature dependence, channel isolation, and rate dependence also meet specifications.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2007

Measurements of Thermophysical Property of Thin Films by Light Pulse Heating Thermoreflectance Methods

Thermoreflectance methods by picosecond pulse heating and by nanosecond pulse heating have been developed under the same geometrical configuration as the laser flash method by the National Metrology Institute of JAPAN, AIST. Using these light pulse heating methods, thermal diffusivity of each layer of multilayered thin films and boundary thermal resistance between the layers can be determined from the observed transient temperature curves based on the response function method. The measurement results of various thin films as transparent conductive films used for flat panel displays, hard coating films and multilayered films of the next generation phase-change optical disk will be presented.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2007

Search for low lying dipole strength in the neutron rich nucleus $^{26}$Ne

Coulomb excitation of the exotic neutron-rich nucleus $^{26}$Ne on a $^{nat}$Pb target was measured at 58 A.MeV in order to search for low-lying E1 strength above the neutron emission threshold. Data were also taken on an $^{nat}$Al target to estimate the nuclear contribution. The radioactive beam was produced by fragmentation of a 95 A.MeV $^{40}$Ar beam delivered by the RIKEN Research Facility. The set-up included a NaI gamma-ray array, a charged fragment hodoscope and a neutron wall. Using the invariant mass method in the $^{25}$Ne+n channel, we observe a sizable amount of E1 strength between 6 and 10 MeV. The reconstructed $^{26}$Ne angular distribution confirms its E1 nature. A reduced dipole transition probability of B(E1)=0.49$\pm$0.16 $e^2fm^2$ is deduced. For the first time, the decay pattern of low-lying strength in a neutron-rich nucleus is obtained. The results are discussed in terms of a pygmy resonance centered around 9 MeV.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2005

Coherent lunar effect on solar neutrino

Coherent interaction of solar neutrino with the moon and its implication are investigated. We solve the Dirac equation with the moon potential and show that a phase shift of the neutrino wave function becomes almost one unit if the neutrino penetrates the moon. Spatial interference is generated for the neutrino wave packets during eclipse and possibility of observing interference effect that is similar to that of a double slit experiment is pointed out.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2005

Neutrino Oscillations in Intermediate States.II -- Wave Packets

We analyze oscillations of intermediate neutrinos in terms of the scattering of particles described by Gaussian wave packets. We study a scalar model as in a previous paper (I) but in realistic situations, where the two particles of the initial state and final state are wave packets and neutrinos are in the intermediate state. The oscillation of the intermediate neutrino is found from the time evolution of the total transition probability between the initial state and final state. The effect of a finite lifetime and a finite relaxation time are also studied. We find that the oscillation pattern depends on the magnitude of wave packet sizes of particles in the initial state and final state and the lifetime of the initial particle. For $Δm^2_{21}=3\times 10^{-2}$ eV$^2$, the oscillation probability deviates from that of the standard formula if the wave packet sizes are around $10^{-13}$ m for 0.4 MeV neutrino.

hep-ph↗