First observation of cyclotron radiation from MeV-scale ${\rm e}^{pm}$ following nuclear beta decay

W. Byron; H. Harrington; R. J. Taylor; W. DeGraw; N. Buzinsky; B. Dodson; M. Fertl; A. Garcia; G. Garvey; B. Graner; M. Guigue; L. Hayen; X. Huyan; K. S. Khaw; K. Knutsen; D. McClain; D. Melconian; P. Mueller; E. Novitski; N. S. Oblath; R. G. H. Robertson; G. Rybka; G. Savard; E. Smith; D. D. Stancil; M. Sternberg; D. W. Storm; H. E. Swanson; J. R. Tedeschi; B. A. VanDevender; F. E. Wietfeldt; A. R. Young; X. Zhu

arXiv · 2209.02870

First observation of cyclotron radiation from MeV-scale ${\rm e}^{pm}$ following nuclear beta decay

View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

We present an apparatus for detection of cyclotron radiation that allows a frequency-based beta energy determination in the 5 keV to 5 MeV range, characteristic of nuclear beta decays. The cyclotron frequency of the radiating beta particles in a magnetic field is used to determine the beta energy precisely. Our work establishes the foundation to apply the cyclotron radiation emission spectroscopy (CRES) technique, developed by the Project 8 collaboration, far beyond the 18-keV tritium endpoint region. We report initial measurements of beta^-s from 6He and beta^+s from 19Ne decays to demonstrate the broadband response of our detection system and assess potential systematic uncertainties for beta spectroscopy over the full (MeV) energy range. This work is an important benchmark for the practical application of the CRES technique to a variety of nuclei, in particular, opening its reach to searches for evidence of new physics beyond the TeV scale via precision beta-decay measurements.

Explore related subjects

nucl-ex

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

W. Byron, H. Harrington, R. J. Taylor, W. DeGraw, N. Buzinsky, B. Dodson, M. Fertl, A. Garcia, G. Garvey, B. Graner, M. Guigue, L. Hayen, X. Huyan, K. S. Khaw, K. Knutsen, D. McClain, D. Melconian, P. Mueller, E. Novitski, N. S. Oblath, R. G. H. Robertson, G. Rybka, G. Savard, E. Smith, D. D. Stancil, M. Sternberg, D. W. Storm, H. E. Swanson, J. R. Tedeschi, B. A. VanDevender, F. E. Wietfeldt, A. R. Young, X. Zhu. 2023-07-03. First observation of cyclotron radiation from MeV-scale ${\rm e}^{pm}$ following nuclear beta decay. https://arxiv.org/abs/2209.02870

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Jet-like di-hadron correlations in pO, OO, and Ne--Ne collisions

Heavy-ion collisions are primarily studied to investigate the properties of hot and dense nuclear matter, known as the quark--gluon plasma (QGP). However, recent observations of hydrodynamic flow-like behaviour in pp and p--Pb collisions at the LHC suggest the possible formation of QGP droplets even in small collision systems. To bridge the multiplicity gap between small and large systems and to examine the applicability of hydrodynamic descriptions, light-ion collisions were performed for the first time at the LHC in 2025. This contribution presents measurements of the near-side peak width of di-hadron correlations in pO, OO, and Ne--Ne collisions with ALICE, used to search for medium effects. The width of the near-side correlation peak is studied as a function of the average charged-particle multiplicity at midrapidity. At low transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$), the near-side peak is broader in OO and Ne--Ne collisions than in pp and pO collisions, and in central collisions its width approaches that measured in Pb--Pb collisions. At higher $p_{\rm T}$ the peak narrows modestly with increasing multiplicity. The results are compared with PYTHIA, AMPT, and JETSCAPE calculations, none of which reproduces the measured widths over the full kinematic range.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2026

Electromagnetic transition strength in $^{53}$Ca: the lifetime of the $5/2^{-}$ state

High-resolution in-beam $γ$-ray spectroscopy of $^{53}$Ca was performed at the Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory (RIBF) at RIKEN. Excited states in $^{53}$Ca were populated via one-neutron and one-proton removal reactions from a $^{55}$Sc radioactive beam, and the emitted $γ$ rays were detected using the HiCARI hybrid germanium detector array. The lifetime of the first excited $5/2^{-}$ state in $^{53}$Ca was measured for the first time through an analysis of Doppler-roadened $γ$-ray line shapes arising from relativistic recoil velocities. A lifetime of $τ = 11.3_{-11.3}^{+5.3(stat)+3(sys)}$ ps was deduced, corresponding to a reduced transition probability of $B(E2;5/2^{-}{\rightarrow}1/2^{-}) > 2.6 e^{2}fm^{4}$ at the 1$σ$ level, with a best-fit value of $4.5 e^{2}fm^{4}$. The measured transition strength is compared with state-of-the-art shell-model and ab initio calculations, providing a stringent benchmark for shell-model Hamiltonians and effective charges and modern ab initio descriptions of the neutron-rich calcium isotopes approaching the potential $N$ = 40 shell closure.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2026

Measurements of $γ_v p \to π^+ π^-p'$ Cross Sections with the CLAS12 Detector for $Q^2$ from 2.4-8.0 GeV$^2$ and $W$ from 1.4-2.1 GeV

This paper reports exclusive cross sections for the $ep \to e'π^+π^-p'$ reaction using the CLAS12 detector at Jefferson Laboratory. The extractions of fully integrated and nine single-differential cross sections are presented for the first time for photon virtualities $Q^2$ from 2.4 to 8.0 GeV$^2$ and center-of-mass energies $W$ from 1.4 to 2.1 GeV, which covers a large part of the nucleon resonance region. These data considerably extend the kinematic reach of previous measurements from CLAS that covered $Q^2$ up to 5.0 GeV$^2$. Exclusive $γ_v p \to π^+ π^-p'$ cross section measurements are of particular importance for the extraction of $γ_vpN^*$ resonance electrocouplings across the $N^*$ spectrum, especially in the mass range above 1.6 GeV where several resonances decay preferentially to the $ππN$ final states. The electrocouplings with extended $Q^2$ coverage expected from these new data will enable an improved understanding of the emergence of $N^*$ mass and structure in the transition from the strongly coupled toward the perturbative QCD regime.

nucl-ex↗