arXiv subjects

S. Nishimura

Publications and source records attributed to S. Nishimura.

51 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

First measurement of $^{30}$S+$α$ resonant elastic scattering for the $^{30}$S($α$,p) reaction rate

Background: Type I x-ray bursts are the most frequent thermonuclear explosions in the galaxy, resulting from thermonuclear runaway on the surface of an accreting neutron star. The $^{30}$S($α$,p) reaction plays a critical role in burst models, yet insufficient experimental information is available to calculate a reliable, precise rate for this reaction. Purpose: Our measurement was conducted to search for states in $^{34}$Ar and determine their quantum properties. In particular, natural-parity states with large $α$-decay partial widths should dominate the stellar reaction rate. Method: We performed the first measurement of $^{30}$S+$α$ resonant elastic scattering up to a center-of-mass energy of 5.5 MeV using a radioactive ion beam. The experiment utilized a thick gaseous active target system and silicon detector array in inverse kinematics. Results: We obtained an excitation function for $^{30}$S($α$,$α$) near $150^{\circ}$ in the center-of-mass frame. The experimental data were analyzed with an $R$-Matrix calculation, and we observed three new resonant patterns between 11.1 and 12.1 MeV, extracting their properties of resonance energy, widths, spin, and parity. Conclusions: We calculated the resonant thermonuclear reaction rate of $^{30}$S($α$,p) based on all available experimental data of $^{34}$Ar and found an upper limit about one order of magnitude larger than a rate determined using a statistical model. The astrophysical impact of these two rates has been investigated through one-zone postprocessing type I x-ray burst calculations. We find that our new upper limit for the $^{30}$S($α$,p)$^{33}$Cl rate significantly affects the predicted nuclear energy generation rate during the burst.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2017

Simultaneous investigation of the $\mathbf{T=1~ (J^π=0^+)}$ and $\mathbf{T=0 ~ (J^π=9^+)}$ $β$ decays in $^{70}$Br

The $β$ decay of the odd-odd nucleus $^{70}$Br has been investigated with the BigRIPS and EURICA setups at the Radioactive Ion Beam Factory (RIBF) of the RIKEN Nishina Center. The $T=0$ ($J^π=9^+$) and $T=1$ ($J^π=0^+$) isomers have both been produced in in-flight fragmentation of $^{78}$Kr with ratios of 41.6(8)\% and 58.4(8)\%, respectively. A half-life of $t_{1/2}=2157^{+53}_{-49}$ ms has been measured for the $J^π=9^+$ isomer from $γ$-ray time decay analysis. Based on this result, we provide a new value of the half-life for the $J^π=0^+$ ground state of $^{70}$Br, $t_{1/2}=78.42\pm0.51$ ms, which is slightly more precise, and in excellent agreement, with the best measurement reported hitherto in the literature. For this decay, we provide the first estimate of the total branching fraction decaying through the $2^+_1$ state in the daughter nucleus $^{70}$Se, $R(2^+_1)=1.3\pm1.1\%$. We also report four new low-intensity $γ$-ray transitions at 661, 1103, 1561, and 1749 keV following the $β$ decay of the $J^π=9^+$ isomer. Based on their coincidence relationships, we tentatively propose two new excited states at 3945 and 4752 keV in $^{70}$Se with most probable spins and parities of $J^π=(6^+)$ and $(8^+)$, respectively. The observed structure is interpreted with the help of shell-model calculations, which predict a complex interplay between oblate and prolate configurations at low excitation energies.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2016

New neutron-deficient isotopes from $^{78}$Kr fragmentation

In an experiment with the BigRIPS separator at the RIKEN Nishina Center, the fragmentation of a $^{78}$Kr beam allowed the observation of new neutron-deficient isotopes at the proton drip-line. Clean identification spectra could be produced and $^{63}$Se, $^{67}$Kr, and $^{68}$Kr were identified for the first time. In addition, $^{59}$Ge was also observed. Three of these isotopes, $^{59}$Ge, $^{63}$Se, and $^{67}$Kr, are potential candidates for ground-state two-proton radioactivity. In addition, the isotopes $^{58}$Ge, $^{62}$Se, and $^{66}$Kr were also sought but without success. The present experiment also allowed the determination of production cross sections for some of the most exotic isotopes. These measurements confirm the trend already observed that the empirical parameterization of fragmentation cross sections, EPAX, significantly overestimates experimental cross sections in this mass region.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2015

Relative contributions of the weak, main and fission-recycling r-process

There has been a persistent conundrum in attempts to model the nucleosynthesis of heavy elements by rapid neutron capture (the $r$-process). Although the location of the abundance peaks near nuclear mass numbers 130 and 195 identify an environment of rapid neutron capture near closed nuclear shells, the abundances of elements just above and below those peaks are often underproduced by more than an order of magnitude in model calculations. At the same time there is a debate in the literature as to what degree the $r$-process elements are produced in supernovae or the mergers of binary neutron stars. In this paper we propose a novel solution to both problems. We demonstrate that the underproduction of elements above and below the $r$-process peaks characteristic in the main or weak $r$-process events (like magnetohydrodynamic jets or neutrino-driven winds in core-collapse supernovae) can be supplemented via fission fragment distributions from the recycling of material in a neutron-rich environment such as that encountered in neutron star mergers. In this paradigm, the abundance peaks themselves are well reproduced by a moderately neutron rich, main $r$-process environment such as that encountered in the magnetohydrodynamical jets in supernovae supplemented with a high-entropy, weakly neutron rich environment such as that encountered in the neutrino-driven-wind model to produce the lighter $r$-process isotopes. Moreover, we show that the relative contributions to the $r$-process abundances in both the solar-system and metal-poor stars from the weak, main, and fission-recycling environments required by this proposal are consistent with estimates of the relative Galactic event rates of core-collapse supernovae for the weak and main $r$-process and neutron star mergers for the fission-recycling $r$-process.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

Nuclear structure of 140Te with N = 88: Structural symmetry and asymmetry in Te isotopes with respect to the double-shell closure Z = 50 and N = 82

We study for the first time the internal structure of 140Te through the beta-delayed gamma-ray spectroscopy of 140Sb. The very neutron-rich 140Sb, Z = 51 and N = 89, ions were produced by the in-flight fission of 238U beam on a 9Be target at 345 MeV per nucleon at the Radioactive Ion Beam Factory, RIKEN. The half-life and spin-parity of 140Sb are reported as 124(30) ms and (4-), respectively. In addition to the excited states of 140Te produced by the beta-decay branch, the beta-delayed one-neutron and two-neutron emission branches were also established. By identifying the first 2+ and 4+ excited states of 140Te, we found that Te isotopes persist their vibrator character with E(4+)/E(2+) = 2. We discuss the distinctive features manifest in this region, such as valence neutron symmetry and asymmetry, revealed in pairs of isotopes with the same neutron holes and particles with respect to N = 82.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2014

Automatic track recognition for large-angle minimum ionizing particles in nuclear emulsions

We previously developed an automatic track scanning system which enables the detection of large-angle nuclear fragments in the nuclear emulsion films of the OPERA experiment. As a next step, we have investigated this system's track recognition capability for large-angle minimum ionizing particles $(1.0 \leq |tan θ| \leq 3.5)$. This paper shows that, for such tracks, the system has a detection efficiency of 95$\%$ or higher and reports the achieved angular accuracy of the automatically recognized tracks. This technology is of general purpose and will likely contribute not only to various analyses in the OPERA experiment, but also to future experiments, e.g. on low-energy neutrino and hadron interactions, or to future research on cosmic rays using nuclear emulsions carried by balloons.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2014

Beam energy dependence of charged pion ratio in $^{28}$Si + In reactions

The double differential cross sections for $^{nat}$In($^{28}$Si, $π^{\pm}$) reactions are measured at 400, 600, and 800 MeV/nucleon. Both $π^+$ and $π^-$ are found to be emitted isotropically from a single moving source. The $π^- / π^+$ yield ratio is determined as a function of the charged pion energy between 25 and 100 MeV. The experimental results significantly differ from the prediction of the standard transport model calculation using the code PHITS. This discrepancy suggests that more theoretical works are required to deduce firm information on the nuclear symmetry energy from the $π^- / π^+$ yield ratio.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2012

Observation of new microsecond isomers among fission products of 345 MeV/nucleon 238U

A search for isomeric gamma-decays among fission fragments from 345 MeV/nucleon 238U has been performed at the RIKEN Nishina Center RI Beam Factory. Fission fragments were selected and identified using the superconducting in-flight separator BigRIPS and were implanted in an aluminum stopper. Delayed gamma-rays were detected using three clover-type high-purity germanium detectors located at the focal plane within a time window of 20 microseconds following the implantation. We identified a total of 54 microsecond isomers with half-lives of ~0.1 - 10 microseconds, including discovery of 18 new isomers in very neutron-rich nuclei: 59Tim, 90Asm, 92Sem, 93Sem, 94Brm, 95Brm, 96Brm, 97Rbm, 108Nbm, 109Mom, 117Rum, 119Rum, 120Rhm, 122Rhm, 121Pdm, 124Pdm, 124Agm and 126Agm, and obtained a wealth of spectroscopic information such as half-lives, gamma-ray energies, gamma-ray relative intensities and gamma-gamma coincidences over a wide range of neutron-rich exotic nuclei. Proposed level schemes are presented for 59Tim, 82Gam, 92Brm, 94Brm, 95Brm, 97Rbm, 98Rbm, 108Nbm, 108Zrm, 109Mom, 117Rum, 119Rum, 120Rhm, 122Rhm, 121Pdm, 124Agm and 125Agm, based on the obtained spectroscopic information and the systematics in neighboring nuclei. Nature of the nuclear isomerism is discussed in relation to evolution of nuclear structure.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2011

Experimental observation of the bifurcation dynamics of an intrinsic localized mode in a driven 1-D nonlinear lattice

Linear response spectra of a driven intrinsic localized mode in a micromechanical array are measured as it approaches two fundamentally different kinds of bifurcation points. A linear phase mode associated with this autoresonant state softens in frequency and its amplitude grows as the upper frequency bifurcation point is approached, similar to the soft mode kinetic transition for a single driven Duffing resonator. A lower frequency bifurcation point occurs when the four-wave-mixing partner of this same phase mode intercepts the top of the extended wave branch, initiating a second kinetic transition process.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2011

Structural evolution in the neutron-rich nuclei 106Zr and 108Zr

The low-lying states in 106Zr and 108Zr have been investigated by means of β-γ and isomer spectroscopy at the RI beam factory, respectively. A new isomer with a half-life of 620\pm150 ns has been identified in 108Zr. For the sequence of even-even Zr isotopes, the excitation energies of the first 2+ states reach a minimum at N = 64 and gradually increase as the neutron number increases up to N = 68, suggesting a deformed sub-shell closure at N = 64. The deformed ground state of 108Zr indicates that a spherical sub-shell gap predicted at N = 70 is not large enough to change the ground state of 108Zr to the spherical shape. The possibility of a tetrahedral shape isomer in 108Zr is also discussed.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2010

30S Beam Development and X-ray Bursts

Over the past three years, we have worked on developing a well-characterized 30S radioactive beam to be used in a future experiment aiming to directly measure the 30S(alpha,p) stellar reaction rate within the Gamow window of Type I X-ray bursts. The importance of the 30S(alpha,p) reaction to X-ray bursts is discussed. Given the astrophysical motivation, the successful results of and challenges involved in the production of a low-energy 30S beam are detailed. Finally, an overview of our future plans regarding this on-going project are presented.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2010

30S(alpha,p) in X-Ray Bursts at CRIB

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2009

Spectroscopy of 32Ne and the Island of Inversion

We report on the first spectroscopic study of the N=22 nucleus 32Ne at the newly completed RIKEN Radioactive Ion Beam Factory. A single gamma-ray line with an energy of 722(9) keV was observed in both inelastic scattering of a 226 MeV/u 32Ne beam on a Carbon target and proton removal from 33Na at 245 MeV/u. This transition is assigned to the de-excitation of the first J^pi = 2+ state in 32Ne to the 0+ ground state. Interpreted through comparison with state-of-the-art shell model calculations, the low excitation energy demonstrates that the Island of Inversion extends to at least N=22 for the Ne isotopes.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2008

Low-lying non-normal parity states in 8B measured by proton elastic scattering on 7Be

A new measurement of proton resonance scattering on 7Be was performed up to the center-of-mass energy of 6.7 MeV using the low-energy RI beam facility CRIB (CNS Radioactive Ion Beam separator) at the Center for Nuclear Study of the University of Tokyo. The excitation function of 7Be+p elastic scattering above 3.5 MeV was measured successfully for the first time, providing important information about the resonance structure of the 8B nucleus. The resonances are related to the reaction rate of 7Be(p, gamma)8B, which is the key reaction in solar 8B neutrino production. Evidence for the presence of two negative parity states is presented. One of them is a 2- state observed as a broad s-wave resonance, the existence of which had been questionable. Its possible effects on the determination of the astrophysical S-factor of 7Be(p, gamma)8B at solar energy are discussed. The other state had not been observed in previous measurements, and its spin and parity were determined as 1-.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2005

Heavy Element Production in Inhomogeneous Big Bang Nucleosynthesis

We present a new astrophysical site of the big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) that are very peculiar compared with the standard BBN. Some models of the baryogenesis suggest that very high baryon density regions were formed in the early universe. On the other hand, recent observations suggest that heavy elements already exist in high red-shifts and the origin of these elements become a big puzzle. Motivated by these, we investigate BBN in very high baryon density regions. BBN proceeds in proton-rich environment, which is known to be like the p-process. However, by taking very heavy nuclei into account, we find that BBN proceeds through both the p-process and the r-process simultaneously. P-nuclei such as 92Mo, 94Mo, 96Ru, 98Ru whose origin is not well known are also synthesized.

astro-ph↗