arXiv subjects

K. Pachucki

Publications and source records attributed to K. Pachucki.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2010

Isotope Shift Measurements of Stable and Short-Lived Lithium Isotopes for Nuclear Charge Radii Determination

Changes in the mean-square nuclear charge radii along the lithium isotopic chain were determined using a combination of precise isotope shift measurements and theoretical atomic structure calculations. Nuclear charge radii of light elements are of high interest due to the appearance of the nuclear halo phenomenon in this region of the nuclear chart. During the past years we have developed a new laser spectroscopic approach to determine the charge radii of lithium isotopes which combines high sensitivity, speed, and accuracy to measure the extremely small field shift of an 8 ms lifetime isotope with production rates on the order of only 10,000 atoms/s. The method was applied to all bound isotopes of lithium including the two-neutron halo isotope Li-11 at the on-line isotope separators at GSI, Darmstadt, Germany and at TRIUMF, Vancouver, Canada. We describe the laser spectroscopic method in detail, present updated and improved values from theory and experiment, and discuss the results.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2010

Radiative electron capture in the first forbidden unique decay of 81Kr

The photon spectrum accompanying the orbital K-electron capture in the first forbidden unique decay of 81Kr was measured. The total radiation intensity for the photon energies larger than 50 keV was found to be 1.47(6) x 10^{-4} per K-capture. Both the shape of the spectrum and its intensity relative to the ordinary, non-radiative capture rate, are compared to theoretical predictions. The best agreement is found for the recently developed model which employs the length gauge for the electromagnetic field.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2009

Reexamination of helium fine structure

In order to explain discrepancies between theoretical predictions and experimental data for the helium fine structure, we check and recalculate all theoretical contributions up to orders mα^7 and m^2/Mα^6. The previous result for the mα^7 correction is improved by a much more accurate calculation of relativistic corrections to the Bethe logarithm. The theoretical values of the 2^3P_0-2^3P_1 and 2^3P_1-2^3P_2 fine structure intervals in helium are, correspondingly, ν_{01} = 29616946.2(1.6) kHz and ν_{12} = 2291177.3(1.6) kHz, with the uncertanties being due to higher-order effects. For the small interval ν_{12}, the theoretical value agrees with the experimental data, whereas for the large interval ν_{01}, a discrepancy of about 3 standard deviations is present.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2007

Nuclear polarizability of helium isotopes in atomic transitions

We estimate the nuclear polarizability correction to atomic transition frequencies in various helium isotopes. This effect is non-negligible for high precision tests of quantum electrodynamics or accurate determination of the nuclear charge radius from spectroscopic measurements in helium atoms and ions. In particular, it amounts to $28(3)$ kHz for 1S-2S transition in 4He+.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2007

Radiative orbital electron capture by the atomic nucleus

The rate for the photon emission accompanying orbital 1S electron capture by the atomic nucleus is recalculated. While a photon can be emitted by the electron or by the nucleus, the use of the length gauge significantly suppresses the nuclear contribution. Our calculations resolve the long standing discrepancy of theoretical predictions with experimental data for $ΔJ=2$ forbidden transitions. We illustrate the results by comparison with the data established experimentally for the first forbidden unique decays of $^{41}$Ca and $^{204}$Tl.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2006

Mass Measurements and the Bound--Electron g Factor

The accurate determination of atomic masses and the high-precision measurement of the bound-electron g factor are prerequisites for the determination of the electron mass, which is one of the fundamental constants of nature. In the 2002 CODATA adjustment [P. J. Mohr and B. N. Taylor, Rev. Mod. Phys. 77, 1 (2005)], the values of the electron mass and the electron-proton mass ratio are mainly based on g factor measurements in combination with atomic mass measurements. In this paper, we briefly discuss the prospects for obtaining other fundamental information from bound-electron g factor measurements, we present some details of a recent investigation of two-loop binding corrections to the g factor, and we also investigate the radiative corrections in the limit of highly excited Rydberg S states with a long lifetime, where the g factor might be explored using a double resonance experiment.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2005

Radiative and correlation effects on the parity-nonconserving transition amplitude in heavy alkaline atoms

The complete gauge-invariant set of the one-loop QED corrections to the parity-nonconserving (PNC) amplitude in cesium and francium is evaluated to all orders in $αZ$ using a local form of the Dirac-Fock potential. The calculations are performed in both length and velocity gauges for the absorbed photon and the total binding QED correction is found to be $-$0.27(3)% for Cs and $-$0.28(5)% for Fr. Moreover, a high-precision calculation of the electron-correlation and Breit-interaction effects on the 7$s-8s$ PNC amplitude in francium using a large-scale configuration-interaction Dirac-Fock method is performed. The obtained results are employed to improve the theoretical predictions for the PNC transition amplitude in Cs and Fr. Using an average value from two most accurate measurements of the vector transition polarizability, the weak charge of $^{133}$Cs is derived to amount to $ Q_W=-72.65(29)_{\rm exp}(36)_{\rm theor}$. This value deviates by $1.1σ$ from the prediction of the standard model. The values of the $7s$-$8s$ PNC amplitude in $^{223}$Fr and $^{210}$Fr are obtained to be $-$15.49(15) and $-$14.16(14), respectively, in units of i$\times 10^{-11}(-Q_W)/N$ a.u.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2005

QED corrections to the parity-nonconserving 6s-7s amplitude in $^{133}$Cs

The complete gauge-invariant set of the one-loop QED corrections to the parity-nonconserving 6s-7s amplitude in $^{133}$Cs is evaluated to all orders in $αZ$ using a local version of the Dirac-Hartree-Fock potential. The calculations are peformed in both length and velocity gauges for the absorbed photon. The total binding QED correction is found to be -0.27(3)%, which differs from previous evaluations of this effect. The weak charge of $^{133}$Cs, derived using two most accurate values of the vector transition polarizability $β$, is $Q_W=-72.57(46)$ for $β= 26.957(51) a_{\rm B}^3$ and $Q_W=-73.09(54)$ for $β= 27.15(11)a_{\rm B}^3 $. The first value deviates by $1.1σ$ from the prediction of the Standard Model, while the second one is in perfect agreement with it.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2005

Extended Hylleraas three-electron integral

A closed form expression for the three-electron Hylleraas integral involving the inverse quadratic power of one inter-particle coordinate is obtained, and recursion relations are derived for positive powers of other coordinates. This result is suited for high precision calculations of relativistic effects in lithium and light lithium-like ions.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2004

Nonrelativistic QED approach to the bound-electron g factor

Within a systematic approach based on nonrelativistic quantum electrodynamics (NRQED), we derive the one-loop self-energy correction of order alpha (Zalpha)^4 to the bound-electron g factor. In combination with numerical data, this analytic result improves theoretical predictions for the self-energy correction for carbon and oxygen by an order of magnitude. Basing on one-loop calculations, we obtain the logarithmic two-loop contribution of order alpha^2 (Zalpha)^4 ln[(Zalpha)^-2] and the dominant part of the corresponding constant term. The results obtained improve the accuracy of the theoretical predictions for the 1S bound-electron g factor and influence the value of the electron mass determined from g factor measurements.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2003

Radiative Corrections to One-Photon Decays of Hydrogenic Ions

Radiative corrections to the decay rate of n=2 states of hydrogenic ions are calculated. The transitions considered are the M1 decay of the 2s state to the ground state and the E1(M2) decays of the $2p_{1/2}$ and $2p_{3/2}$ states to the ground state. The radiative corrections start in order $α(Z α)^2$, but the method used sums all orders of $Zα$. The leading $α(Zα)^2$ correction for the E1 decays is calculated and compared with the exact result. The extension of the calculational method to parity nonconserving transitions in neutral atoms is discussed.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2003

Radiative Corrections to Parity Nonconserving Transitions in Atoms

The matrix element of a bound electron interacting with the nucleus through exchange of a Z boson is studied for the gauge invariant case of $2s_{1/2}-2p_{1/2}$ transitions in hydrogenic ions. The QED radiative correction to the matrix element, which is $-α/2π$ in lowest order, is calculated to all orders in $Zα$ using exact propagators. Previous calculation of the first-order binding correction are confirmed both analytically and by fitting the exact function at low $Z$. Consequences for the interpretation of parity nonconservation in cesium are discussed.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2002

A Problematic Set of Two-Loop Self-Energy Corrections

We investigate a specific set of two-loop self-energy corrections involving squared decay rates and point out that their interpretation is highly problematic. The corrections cannot be interpreted as radiative energy shifts in the usual sense. Some of the problematic corrections find a natural interpretation as radiative nonresonant corrections to the natural line shape. They cannot uniquely be associated with one and only one atomic level. While the problematic corrections are rather tiny when expressed in units of frequency (a few Hertz for hydrogenic P levels) and do not affect the reliability of quantum electrodynamics at the current level of experimental accuracy, they may be of importance for future experiments. The problems are connected with the limitations of the so-called asymptotic-state approximation which means that atomic in- and out-states in the S-matrix are assumed to have an infinite lifetime.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2000

Higher-order binding corrections to the Lamb shift of 2P states

We present an improved calculation of higher-order corrections to the one-loop self energy of 2P states in hydrogen-like systems with small nuclear charge Z. The method is based on a division of the integration with respect to the photon energy into a high- and a low-energy part. The high-energy part is calculated by an expansion of the electron propagator in powers of the Coulomb field. The low-energy part is simplified by the application of a Foldy-Wouthuysen transformation. This transformation leads to a clear separation of the leading contribution from the relativistic corrections and removes higher order terms. The method is applied to the 2P_{1/2} and 2P_{3/2} states in atomic hydrogen. The results lead to new theoretical values for the Lamb shifts and the fine structure splitting.

physics.atom-ph↗