Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “NUCLEUS”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Ultrarelativistic quark-nucleus scattering in a light-front Hamiltonian approach

In this work, we investigate the scattering of a quark on a heavy nucleus at high energies using the time-dependent basis light-front quantization (tBLFQ) formalism, which is the first application of the tBLFQ formalism in QCD. We present the real-time evolution of the quark wave function in a strong classical color field of the relativistic nucleus, described as the color glass condensate. The quark and the nucleus color field are simulated in the QCD SU(3) color space. We calculate the total and the differential cross sections, and the quark distribution in coordinate and color spaces using the tBLFQ approach. We recover the eikonal cross sections in the eikonal limit. We find that the differential cross section from the tBLFQ simulation is in agreement with a perturbative calculation at large $p_⊥$, and it deviates from the perturbative calculation at small $p_⊥$ due to higher-order contributions. In particular, we relax the eikonal limit by letting the quark carry realistic finite longitudinal momenta. We study the sub-eikonal effect on the quark through the transverse coordinate distribution of the quark with different longitudinal momentum, and we find the sub-eikonal effect to be sizable. Our results can significantly reduce the theoretical uncertainties in small $p_⊥$ region which has important implications to the phenomenology of the hadron-nucleus and deep inelastic scattering at high energies.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Global Microscopic Description of Nucleon-Nucleus Scattering with Quantified Uncertainties

We develop for the first time a microscopic global nucleon-nucleus optical potential with quantified uncertainties suitable for analyzing nuclear reaction experiments at next-generation rare-isotope beam facilities. Within the improved local density approximation and without any adjustable parameters, we begin by computing proton-nucleus and neutron-nucleus optical potentials from a set of five nuclear forces from chiral effective field theory for 1800 target nuclei in the mass range 12 ≤ A ≤ 242 for energies between 0 MeV < E ≲ 150 MeV. We then parameterize a global optical potential for each chiral force that depends smoothly on the projectile energy as well as the target nucleus mass number and isospin asymmetry. Uncertainty bands for elastic scattering observables are generated from a full covariance analysis of the parameters entering in the description of our global optical potential and benchmarked against existing experimental data for stable target nuclei. Since our approach is purely microscopic, we anticipate a similar quality of the model for nucleon scattering on unstable isotopes.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Theoretically and practically efficient parallel nucleus decomposition

This paper studies the nucleus decomposition problem, which has been shown to be useful in finding dense substructures in graphs. We present a novel parallel algorithm that is efficient both in theory and in practice. Our algorithm achieves a work complexity matching the best sequential algorithm while also having low depth (parallel running time), which significantly improves upon the only existing parallel nucleus decomposition algorithm (Sariyüce et al. , PVLDB 2018). The key to the theoretical efficiency of our algorithm is a new lemma that bounds the amount of work done when peeling cliques from the graph, combined with the use of a theoretically-efficient parallel algorithms for clique listing and bucketing. We introduce several new practical optimizations, including a new multi-level hash table structure to store information on cliques space-efficiently and a technique for traversing this structure cache-efficiently. On a 30-core machine with two-way hyper-threading on real-world graphs, we achieve up to a 55x speedup over the state-of-the-art parallel nucleus decomposition algorithm by Sariyüce et al. , and up to a 40x self-relative parallel speedup. We are able to efficiently compute larger nucleus decompositions than prior work on several million-scale graphs for the first time.

Computer Science↗
DOE OSTI2021

Boson Fermion Nucleus Dimensions: Monograph #10

Assuming a spherical nucleus, scattering experiments measuring nuclear radii will give values roughly two orders of magnitude less than the radius of a boson fermion nucleus (BFN). This occurs because of the extended structure of the BFN, with nucleons and positive charge distributed in space gives the appearance of a smaller nucleus in scattering experiments. The scattering data from a BFN indicates a spherical nucleus with dimensions comparable to detailed structural features in the BFN.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Boson Fermion Nucleus Explanation for Fission Fragment Anisotropy: Monograph #13

Since 1952, anisotropy has been observed in the paths of fission fragments following the assimilation of an incident neutron or photon in the nucleus. Fission fragment flux favors certain angles relative to the path of the incident particle, constituting anisotropy. The amount of anisotropy is dependent on the energy of the incident particle. Fission fragment anisotropy can be explained by the disruption of nuclear structure combined with the requirement of a specific rotational orientation in theta and phi of that structure relative to the incident neutron or photon flux. A specific and limited area in the nucleus can assimilate the incident particle and induce upset within the structure, followed by scission and fission of the nucleus. The orientation and nature of the structure upset dictates fission fragment trajectory and is responsible for fission fragment anisotropy. This concept can be explained and supported by the theory of boson fermion nucleus (BFN) structure.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Recent Progress in Low-Energy Neutrino-Nucleus Interactions Physics

Tens of MeV neutrinos, such as those from stopped pion or core-collapse supernova sources, interact with target nuclei in detectors through either coherent elastic or inelastic scattering processes. These interactions provide valuable insights into various Standard Model and Beyond the Standard Model phenomena, with significant implications for nuclear physics, particle physics, and astrophysics.The precision of coherent elastic scattering, where the nucleus remains in its ground state, depends on the accuracy of the underlying weak form factor of the nucleus. In contrast, inelastic scattering, where neutrinos excite the target nucleus to low-lying nuclear states, involves complex nuclear structures and dynamics and are quite poorly constrained. Moreover, these low-energy processes also have implications for neutrino-nucleus scattering of GeV energy neutrino beams. In this talk, I will present an overview of the field, highlight recent advancements, and outline future directions.

Pandey, Vishvas↗
DOE OSTI2021

Systematics and Consequences of Comet Nucleus Outgassing Torques

Anisotropic outgassing from comets exerts a torque sufficient to rapidly change the angular momentum of the nucleus, potentially leading to rotational instability. Here, we use empirical measures of spin changes in a sample of comets to characterize the torques, and to compare them with expectations from a simple model. Both the data and the model show that the characteristic spin-up timescale, τ {sub s}, is a strong function of nucleus radius, r {sub n}. Empirically, we find that the timescale for comets (most with perihelion 1–2 au and eccentricity ∼0.5) varies as τ{sub s}∼100r{sub n}{sup 2}, where r {sub n} is expressed in kilometers, and τ {sub s} is in years. The fraction of the nucleus surface that is active varies as f{sub A}∼0.1r{sub n}{sup −2}. We find that the median value of the dimensionless moment arm of the torque is k {sub T} = 0.007 (i.e., ∼0.7% of the escaping momentum torques the nucleus), with weak (<3σ) evidence for a size dependence k{sub T}∼10{sup −3}r{sub n}{sup 2}. Sub-kilometer nuclei have spin-up timescales comparable to their orbital periods, confirming that outgassing torques are quickly capable of driving small nuclei toward rotational disruption. Torque-induced rotational instability likely accounts for the paucity of sub-kilometer short-period cometary nuclei, and for the pre-perihelion destruction of sungrazing comets. Torques from sustained outgassing on small active asteroids can rival YORP torques, even for very small (≲1 g s{sup −1}) mass-loss rates. Finally, we highlight the important role played by observational biases in the measured distributions of τ {sub s}, f {sub A}, and k {sub T}.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2023

Cross Sections for Coherent Elastic and Inelastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering

The prospects of extracting new physics signals in coherent elastic neutrino–nucleus scattering (CEνNS) processes are limited by the precision with which the underlying nuclear structure physics, embedded in the weak nuclear form factor, is known. We present calculations of charge and weak nuclear form factors and CEνNS cross sections on 12C, 16O, 40Ar, 56Fe and 208Pb nuclei. We obtain the proton and neutron densities, and charge and weak form factors by solving Hartree–Fock (HF) equations with a Skyrme (SkE2) nuclear potential. We validate our approach by comparing 208Pb and 40Ar charge form factor predictions with available elastic electron scattering data. Since CEνNS experiments at stopped-pion sources are also well suited to measure inelastic charged–current and neutral–current neutrino–nucleus cross sections, we also present calculations for these processes, incorporating a continuum Random Phase Approximation (CRPA) description on top of the HF–SkE2 picture of the nucleus. Providing both coherent as well as inelastic cross sections in a consistent framework, we aim at obtaining a reliable and detailed comparison of the strength of these processes in the energy region below 100 MeV. Furthermore, we attempt to gauge the level of theoretical uncertainty pertaining to the description of the 40Ar form factor and CEνNS cross sections by comparing relative differences between recent microscopic nuclear theory and widely-used phenomenological form factor predictions. Future precision measurements of CEνNS will potentially help in constraining these nuclear structure details that will in turn improve prospects of extracting new physics.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Ab initio nucleon-nucleus elastic scattering with chiral effective field theory uncertainties

Effective interactions for nucleon-nucleus elastic scattering from first principles require the use of the same nucleon-nucleon interaction in the structure and reaction calculations and a consistent treatment of the relevant operators at each order. Systematic investigations of the effect of truncation uncertainties of chiral nucleon-nucleon ( N N ) forces have been carried out for scattering observables in the two- and three-nucleons system as well as for bound-state properties of light nuclei. Here we extend this type of study to proton and neutron elastic scattering for 16 O and 12 C. Using the frameworks of the spectator expansion of multiple scattering theory as well as the no-core shell model, we employ one specific chiral interaction from the LENPIC collaboration and consistently calculate the leading-order effective nucleon-nucleus interaction up to the third chiral order, from which we extract elastic scattering observables. Then we apply pointwise as well as correlated uncertainty quantification for the estimation of the chiral truncation error. We calculate and analyze proton elastic scattering observables for 16 O and 12 C as well as neutron elastic scattering observables for 12 C between 65 and 185 MeV projectile kinetic energy. We find in all cases qualitatively similar results for the chiral truncation uncertainties as in few-body systems and assess them using similar diagnostic tools. The order-by-order convergence of the scattering observables for 16 O and 12 C is very reasonable around 100 MeV, while for higher energies the chiral expansion parameter becomes too large for convergence. Comparing proton and neutron differential cross sections reveals that their description is comparable up to around 100 MeV. Here, we also find a nearly perfect correlation between the differential cross section for neutron scattering and the N N Wolfenstein amplitudes for small momentum transfers. The diagnostic tools for studying order-by-order convergence in observables in few-body systems can be employed for observables in nucleon-nucleus scattering with only minor modifications provided the momentum scale in the problems is not too large. We also find that the chiral N N interaction on which our study is based gives a very good description of differential cross sections for 16 O and 12 C as low as 65-MeV projectile energy, particularly in the forward direction. In addition, the very forward direction of the neutron differential cross section mirrors the behavior of the N N interaction amazingly well.

6 ≤ A ≤ 19↗
DOE OSTI2022

The impact of neutrino-nucleus interaction modeling on new physics searches

Accurate neutrino-nucleus interaction modeling is an essential requirement for the success of the accelerator-based neutrino program. As no satisfactory description of cross sections exists, experiments tune neutrino-nucleus interactions to data to mitigate mis-modeling. In this work, we study how the interplay between near detector tuning and cross section mis-modeling affects new physics searches. We perform a realistic simulation of neutrino events and closely follow NOvA’s tuning, the first published of such procedures in a neutrino experiment. We analyze two illustrative new physics scenarios, sterile neutrinos and light neutrinophilic scalars, presenting the relevant experimental signatures and the sensitivity regions with and without tuning. While the tuning does not wash out sterile neutrino oscillation patterns, cross section mis-modeling can bias the experimental sensitivity. In the case of light neutrinophilic scalars, variations in cross section models completely dominate the sensitivity regardless of any tuning. Our findings reveal the critical need to improve our theoretical understanding of neutrino-nucleus interactions, and to estimate the impact of tuning on new physics searches. We urge neutrino experiments to follow NOvA’s example and publish the details of their tuning procedure, and to develop strategies to more robustly account for cross section uncertainties, which will expand the scope of their physics program.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Triaxiality in the mid-shell nucleus 112 Pd

In this work, lifetimes of low-spin excited states in 112 Pd were measured using the recoil-distance Doppler-shift technique. The nucleus of interest was populated in a 110 Pd( 18 O, 16 O) 112 Pd reaction using the Cologne FN Tandem accelerator. Three lifetimes of ground-state band members and one lifetime of the γ band were measured. From these lifetimes reduced transition probabilities were extracted and compared to interacting boson model, γ-soft calculations, and Davydov calculations. The lifetime of the $2_{γ}^{+}$ gives some insights on the nuclear shape and structure of the γ band. The deduced transition rates show an indicator for a rigid triaxial nucleus as well as more indicators for a γ-soft nucleus.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Solving the Puzzles of the Decay of the Heaviest Known Proton-Emitting Nucleus 185 Bi

Two long-standing puzzles in the decay of 185 Bi, the heaviest known proton-emitting nucleus are revisited. These are the non-observation of the 9/2 – state, which is the ground state of all heavier odd-A Bi isotopes, and the hindered nature of proton and α decays of its presumed 60-μs 1/2 + ground state. The 185 Bi nucleus has now been studied with the 95 Mo( 93 Nb; 3n) reaction in complementary experiments using the Fragment Mass Analyzer and Argonne Gas-Filled Analyzer at Argonne National Laboratory’s ATLAS facility. The experiments have established the existence of two states in 185 Bi; the short-lived T 1/2 = $2.8$$^{+2.3}_{–1.0}$ μs, proton- and α-decaying ground state, and a 58(2)–μs γ-decaying isomer, the half-life of which was previously attributed to the ground state. The reassignment of the ground-state lifetime results in a proton-decay spectroscopic factor close to unity and represents the only known example of a ground-state proton decay to a daughter nucleus ( 184 Pb) with a major shell closure. Furthermore, the data also demonstrate that the ordering of low- and high-spin states in 185 Bi is reversed relative to the heavier odd-A Bi isotopes, with the intruder-based 1/2 + configuration becoming the ground state, similar to the lightest At nuclides.

150 ≤ A ≤ 189↗
DOE OSTI2024

Compound-Nucleus and Doorway-State Decays of β -Delayed Neutron Emitters K 51 , 52 , 53

We investigated decays of K 51 , 52 , 53 at the ISOLDE Decay Station at CERN in order to understand the mechanism of the β -delayed neutron-emission ( β n ) process. The experiment quantified neutron and γ -ray emission paths for each precursor. We used this information to test the hypothesis, first formulated by Bohr in 1939, that neutrons in the β n process originate from the structureless “compound nucleus.” The data are consistent with this postulate for most of the observed decay paths. The agreement, however, is surprising because the compound-nucleus stage should not be achieved in the studied β decay due to insufficient excitation energy and level densities in the neutron emitter. In the K 53 β n decay, we found a preferential population of the first excited state in Ca 52 that contradicted Bohr’s hypothesis. The latter was interpreted as evidence for direct neutron emission sensitive to the structure of the neutron-unbound state. We propose that the observed nonstatistical neutron emission proceeds through the coupling with nearby doorway states that have large neutron-emission probabilities. The appearance of “compound-nucleus” decay is caused by the aggregated small contributions of multiple doorway states at higher excitation energy. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Effective mass of α-cluster in 12C nucleus

Based on the effective-mass concept, we perform the Faddeev calculations for a low-lying spectrum of 3[Formula: see text] states in [Formula: see text]C nucleus. A three-body potential is used to describe the known breaking of the 3[Formula: see text]-cluster structure in the nucleus. We show that the contribution of the three-body potential to the Hamiltonian can be compensated by increasing/decreasing the [Formula: see text]-particle free mass. The effective-mass values are adjusted to reproduce the experimental data for the [Formula: see text]C nucleus. The energy dependence of the effective mass and the correlation to a three-body potential are discussed. We show that the coupling between the [Formula: see text] ([Formula: see text]) levels forms a specific picture of anti-crossing on the energy/effective-mass plane.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2022

Inclusive and Inelastic Scattering in Neutrino-Nucleus Interactions

Neutrino-nucleus cross section measurements can provide both insights into nuclear physics and important data that can be used to improve model predictions used for neutrino oscillation physics. Two measurements of neutrino-nucleus cross sections were performed using data from the MINERvA experiment, each probing different classes of neutrino interactions. Double and single-differential flux-integrated measurements of inclusive charged current neutrino-nucleus cross sections at a peak neutrino energy of 3.5 GeV are presented as a function of the longitudinal and transverse momentum of the muon produced in the interaction. Additionally, an analysis of charged-current deep inelastic scattering (DIS) of muon neutrinos was performed in carbon, iron, lead and hydrocarbon in a neutrino beam with a peak energy of 6 GeV. Cross sections were measured in each material, and ratios were also taken between the cross sections of each of the materials and hydrocarbon, allowing for examination of nuclear dependencies of the neutrino cross section. Absolute DIS cross sections as a function of neutrino energy and flux integrated differential cross sections as a function of the Bjorken-x scaling variable were both measured.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Boson Fermion Nucleus Explanation for Violation of Parity in the Radioactive Decay of Cobalt-60: Monograph #12

In 1957, Chien-Shuing Wu subjected cobalt-60 to supercooled temperatures and a strong magnetic field while measuring radioactive decay. This experiment showed violation of parity— a long-held, fundamental precept in physics stating that nuclear radioactive-decay emission flux will not vary in the solid angle about the nucleus. During Wu’s experiment, beta particles (electrons) exhibited asymmetry, preferentially exiting the cobalt-60 nuclei in the polar region opposite the applied magnetic field. Gamma-ray emissions were anisotropic, preferring to exit the nucleus around the equatorial region. The boson fermion nucleus (BFN) explains the origins of these observed phenomena, where the nuclear structure is pinned in the strong magnetic field with minimal motion in supercooled conditions, while beta particles and gamma rays are emitted from specific locations within the nuclear structure.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering: Terrestrial and astrophysical applications

Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CE$\nu$NS) is a process in which neutrinos scatter on a nucleus which acts as a single particle. Though the total cross section is large by neutrino standards, CE$\nu$NS has long proven difficult to detect, since the deposited energy into the nucleus is $\sim$ keV. In 2017, the COHERENT collaboration announced the detection of CE$\nu$NS using a stopped-pion source with CsI detectors, followed up the detection of CE$\nu$NS using an Ar target. The detection of CE$\nu$NS has spawned a flurry of activities in high-energy physics, inspiring new constraints on beyond the Standard Model (BSM) physics, and new experimental methods. The CE$\nu$NS process has important implications for not only high-energy physics, but also astrophysics, nuclear physics, and beyond. This whitepaper discusses the scientific importance of CE$\nu$NS, highlighting how present experiments such as COHERENT are informing theory, and also how future experiments will provide a wealth of information across the aforementioned fields of physics.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

νBDX: a Coherent Elastic Neutrino Nucleus Scattering (CEνNS) experiment at Jefferson Lab

Particle physics is an ever-changing field seeking to explain phenomena that lie at the limits of our current knowledge. Among discovered and hypothesized interactions, Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering (CE?NS) stands out as a fascinating and elusive phenomenon, offering a unique window into the nature of neutrinos and their interactions with matter. CE?NS, a process predicted by the Standard Model, represents one of the subtle ways in which neutrinos can interact with atomic nuclei. Unlike other neutrinonucleus interactions, CE?NS occurs coherently, meaning that the entire nucleus collectively responds to the neutrino-mediated weak force, resulting in small energy transfers to the nucleus as a whole. The extremely rare nature of CE?NS events presents a formidable challenge to experimenters seeking to detect and study these interactions. Recent advances in detector technologies and the implementation of large-scale experiments, such as coherent neutrino scattering experiments at research facilities around the world, have opened up new avenues for exploring this elusive phenomenon. These experiments aim not only to observe CE?NS directly but also to extract valuable information on neutrino properties, nuclear structure, and potential deviations from the Standard Model. This thesis aims to study the feasibility of an experiment to study CE?NS at The Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, Newport News, VA, USA. This would be an experiment that exploits the production of neutrinos by an electron beam dumped on a thick target (the beam dump). The large quantity of neutrinos produced and their energy profile are well suited to the purpose of studying the CE?NS. In my thesis, I will start from previous studies on CE?NS and from theoretical considerations regarding the process, then quantify the expected events for a hypothetical experiment and possible backgrounds through simulations aimed at optimizing the geometry of the future detector. I will also show some tests on selected detector components that will be part of a first prototype.

Grazzi, Stefano↗