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Validation of multiscale microstructure evolution models can be improved when standard microstructure characterization tools are coupled with methods sensitive to individual point defects. We demonstrate how electronic and vibrational properties of defects revealed by optical absorption and Raman spectroscopies can be used to compliment transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD) in the characterization of microstructure evolution in ceria under non-equilibrium conditions. Experimental manifestation of non-equilibrium conditions was realized by exposing cerium dioxide (CeO2) to energetic protons at elevated temperature. Two sintered polycrystalline CeO2 samples were bombarded with protons accelerated to a few MeVs. These irradiation conditions produced a microstructure with resolvable extended defects and a significant concentration of point defects. A rate theory (RT) model was parametrized using the results of TEM, XRD, and thermal conductivity measurements to infer point defect concentrations. An abundance of cerium sublattice defects suggested by the RT model is supported by Raman spectroscopy measurements, which show peak shift and broadening of the intrinsic T2g peak and emergence of new defect peaks. Additionally, spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements performed in lieu of optical absorption reveals the presence of Ce3+ ions associated with oxygen vacancies. This work lays the foundation for a coupled approach that considers a multimodal characterization of microstructures to guide and validate complex defect evolution models.

The discovery of the new proton emitter $^{116}_{~57}$La$_{59}$, 23 neutrons away from the only stable La isotope, $^{139}_{~57}$La$_{82}$, is reported. The $^{116}$La nuclei were synthesised in the fusion-evaporation reaction $^{58}$Ni($^{64}$Zn, p4n)$^{116}$La and identified via their proton radioactivity using the MARA mass spectrometer and the silicon detectors placed at its focal plane. Comparisons of the measured proton energy ($E_{p} = 718 \pm 9 $ keV) and half-life ($T_{1/2} = 50 \pm 22$ ms) with values calculated using %microscopic nuclear barrier penetration theory the Universal Decay Law approach indicate that the proton is emitted with an orbital angular momentum $l=2$ and that its emission probability is enhanced relative to its closest, less exotic, odd-even lanthanum isotope ($^{117}_{~57}$La$_{60}$) while the proton-emission $Q$-value is lower. We propose this to be a signature for the presence of strong neutron-proton pair correlations in this exotic, neutron deficient system. The observations of $\gamma$ decays from isomeric states in $^{116}$La and $^{117}$La are also reported.

This work encompasses an in-depth transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography study of Ti-stabilized austenitic steel irradiated with Fe-ions. The focus is on radiation induced segregation and precipitation, and in particular on how Ti and TiC affect these processes. A 15-15Ti steel (grade: DIN 1.4970) in two thermo-mechanical states (cold-worked and aged) was irradiated at different temperatures up to a dose of 40 dpa. At low irradiation temperatures, the cold-worked and aged materials evolved to a similar microstructure dominated by small Si and Ni clusters, corresponding to segregation to small point defect clusters. TiC precipitates, initially present in the aged material, were found to be unstable under these irradiation conditions. Elevated irradiation temperatures resulted in the nucleation of nanometer sized Cr enriched TiC precipitates surrounded by Si and Ni enriched shells. In addition, nanometer sized Ti- and Mn-enriched G-phase (M6Ni16Si7) precipitates formed, often attached to TiC precipitates. Post irradiation, larger number densities of TiC were observed in the cold-worked material compared to the aged material. This was correlated with a lower volume fraction of G-phase. The findings suggest that at elevated irradiation temperatures, the precipitate-matrix interface is an important point defect sink and contributes to the improved radiation resistance of this material. The study is a first of its kind on stabilized steel and demonstrates the significance of the small Ti addition to the evolution of the microstructure under irradiation. (C) 2020 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

In situ characterization of defects, microstructure, and properties will provide new perspectives regarding the structure-property relationship of materials in extreme environments. In this communication, we investigate the utility of laser-based thermal transport measurements in combination with X-ray diffraction as a means to characterize the early-stage evolution of irradiation-induced defects in ceramics. Uranium dioxide is used as a model system to analyze the impact of irradiation-induced defects with 2.6 MeV H and 3.9 MeV He ions up to a dose of 0.1 displacement per atom (dpa) at low temperature. For these radiation regimes, the formation of extended defects such as loops and voids is limited as compared to point defects. Lattice expansion was determined from X-ray diffraction analysis. Modulated thermoreflectance was used to measure the thermal conductivity of the ion damaged region. Both H and He irradiation leads to an expansion of the crystal lattice and a reduction in thermal conductivity. For the same dpa, the lattice expansion and conductivity reduction were notably different for H and He irradiated samples. The results were analyzed using simple models for lattice expansion and thermal conductivity reduction, informed by atomistic simulation from the literature. The modeling results suggest that the difference in the defect kinetics between two conditions can be attributed to ionization induced enhanced defect mobility and the stability of Schottky defects. These results demonstrate the utility of thermal conductivity measurements as a tool for characterization of microstructure under irradiation.

Proton (H+) irradiation effects in polycrystalline UO2 have been studied. The irradiation was carried out using three ion energies and two different ion fluxes at 600 °C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations showed that significant surface flaking took place. Focused ion beam (FIB) milling in SEM was successfully applied for extracting lamellas from uneven blistered surfaces for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigations allowing detailed investigations for the degradation mechanisms. High-resolution TEM for the flaked UO2 surfaces revealed that the implanted H+ formed sharp two-dimensional cavities at the peak ion-stopping region instead of diffusing to the matrix. The resulting lateral stress likely caused UO2 surface deterioration in good agreement with previous blistering and flaking studies on crystalline materials. Graphical abstract

Decay spectroscopy of the odd-proton nuclei $^{249}$Md and $^{251}$Md has been performed. High-K isomeric states were identified for the first time in these two nuclei through the measurement of their electromagnetic decay. An isomeric state with a half-life of 2.8(5) ms and an excitation energy $\ge 910$ keV was found in $^{249}$Md. In $^{251}$Md, an isomeric state with a half-life of 1.4(3) s and an excitation energy $\ge 844$ keV was found. Similarly to the neighbouring $^{255}$Lr, these two isomeric states are interpreted as 3 quasi-particle high-K states and compared to new theoretical calculations. Excited nuclear configurations were calculated within two scenarios: via blocking nuclear states located in proximity to the Fermi surface or/and using the quasiparticle Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer method. Relevant states were selected on the basis of the microscopic-macroscopic model with a deformed Woods–Saxon potential. The most probable candidates for the configurations of K-isomeric states in Md nuclei are proposed. Decay spectroscopy of the odd-proton nuclei $^{249}$Md and $^{251}$Md has been performed. High-$K$ isomeric states were identified for the first time in these two nuclei through the measurement of their electromagnetic decay. An isomeric state with a half-life of $2.8(5)$ ms and an excitation energy $\geq 910$ keV was found in $^{249}$Md. In $^{251}$Md, an isomeric state with a half-life of $1.4(3)$ s and an excitation energy $\geq 844$ keV was found. Similarly to the neighbouring $^{255}$Lr, these two isomeric states are interpreted as 3 quasi-particle high-$K$ states and compared to new theoretical calculations. Excited nuclear configurations were calculated within two scenarios: via blocking nuclear states located in proximity to the Fermi surface or/and using the quasiparticle Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer method. Relevant states were selected on the basis of the microscopic-macroscopic model with a deformed Woods-Saxon potential. The most probable candidates for the configurations of $K$-isomeric states in Md nuclei are proposed.

International audience; Prolate-oblate shape coexistence close to the ground state in the strongly-deformed proton-rich A≈120 nuclei is reported for the first time. One of the four reported bands in 119Cs, built on a 11/2− state at 670 keV, consists of nearly degenerate signature partners, and has properties which unequivocally indicate the strongly-coupled πh11/2[505]11/2− configuration associated with oblate shape. Together with the decoupled πh11/2[541]3/2− band built on the 11/2− prolate state at 110 keV, for which a half-life of T1/2=55(5)μs has been measured, the new bands bring evidence of shape coexistence at low spin in the proton-rich strongly deformed A≈120 nuclei, a phenomenon predicted since long time, but not yet observed. Calculations using the particle-number conserving cranked shell model and two dimensional tilted axis cranking covariant density functional theory support and well reproduce the observed oblate and prolate coexisting low-energy states in 119Cs.

Fast-timing measurements at the focal plane of a separator can suffer from poor timing resolution. This is due to the variations in time-of-flight (ToF) for photons travelling to a given detector, which arise from the changes in the implantation positions of the recoil nuclei emitting the γ rays of interest. In order to minimise these effects on timing measurements, a procedure is presented that improves fast-timing data by performing ToF corrections on an event-by-event basis. This method was used to correct data collected with an array of eight LaBr 3 detectors, which detected γ rays from spatially distributed 138Gd recoil-implants at the focal plane of the Recoil-Ion-Transport-Unit (RITU) spectrometer. The Generalised Centroid Difference (GCD) method was used to extract a lifetime from data in conjunction with a new procedure to calibrate the time walk. The lifetime of the first 2 + state in 138Gd, populated by the decay of the K π = 8 − isomeric state, was measured to be 229(24) ps using the ToF-corrected data, which is consistent within three standard deviations to the literature value. The results together with Monte-Carlo simulations show that the ToF correction procedure reduced the uncertainty in the measured lifetimes by 3 % in the case of the spatially distributed nuclei at the focal plane of RITU. However, ∼ 12 % has been estimated for a similar experiment when using a larger focal plane i.e. the Super-FRS at the FAIR facility.

Two new excited bands built on the πh11/2 configuration have been identified in Nd135 in addition to the known πh11/2 band. The energy spectra of the excited bands and the available electromagnetic transition probabilities are in good agreement with theoretical results obtained using quasiparticle-plus-triaxial-rotor model calculations. The properties of the bands identify them as tilted precession bands instead of wobbling bands. Our results give a new insight into the interpretation of the low-lying bands in odd-A mass nuclei, and can stimulate future studies to address the nuclear triaxiality.

The neutron-deficient gold (Z=79) isotopes in the vicinity of the neutron midshell N=104 provide prolific examples of shape coexistence and isomerism at low excitation energy. They can be probed via a number of different experimental techniques. In this study, two new isomeric states with half-lives of 294(7) and 373(9) ns have been observed in the neutron-deficient odd-odd nuclide Au178 (N=99) in an experiment at the RITU gas-filled separator at JYFL, Jyvaskyla. This result was achieved due to the use of a segmented planar germanium detector with a high efficiency at low energies. By applying the recoil-decay tagging technique, they were assigned to decay to two different long-lived α-decaying states in Au178.

Lifetime measurements in $$^{178}$$ 178 Pt with excited states de-exciting through $$\gamma $$ γ -ray transitions and internal electron conversions have been performed. Ionic charges were selected by the in-flight mass separator MARA and measured at the focal plane in coincidence with the $$4_1^+\rightarrow 2_1^+$$ 4 1 + → 2 1 + $$257\,$$ 257 keV $$\gamma $$ γ -ray transition detected using the JUROGAM 3 spectrometer. The resulting charge-state distributions were analysed using the differential decay curve method (DDCM) framework to obtain a lifetime value of 430(20) ps for the $$2_1^+$$ 2 1 + state. This work builds on a method that combines the charge plunger technique with the DDCM analysis. As an alternative analysis, ions were selected in coincidence with the $$^{178}$$ 178 Pt alpha decay ($$E_{\mathrm {alpha}} = 5.458(5)$$ E alpha = 5.458 ( 5 ) MeV) at the focal plane. Lifetime information was obtained by fitting a two-state Bateman equation to the decay curve with the lifetime of individual states defined by a single quadrupole moment. This yielded a lifetime value of 430(50) ps for the $$2_1^+$$ 2 1 + state, and 54(6) ps for the $$4_1^+$$ 4 1 + state. An analysis method based around the Bateman equation will become especially important when using the charge plunger method for the cases where utilising coincidences between prompt $$\gamma $$ γ rays and recoils is not feasible.

Fine structure in the α decay of Th90221, populating excited states in Ra88217, was studied using αγ-coincidence spectroscopy. Two α-decay branches from Th221 have been newly observed, with Eα(keV)[bα(%)]=7951(8)[0.14(3)] and 8247(3)[1.51(12)], together with three previously known branches. Also, two new states in Ra217 were identified at E = 177 and 227 keV. The ground-state configurations of the odd-A, N = 131 transitional isotones above Pb208 are interpreted from their α-decay fine structure systematics and considered in terms of predictions using spherical shell and reflection-asymmetric models.

Physical review / C 102(5), 054304 (2020). doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.102.054304, Published by Inst., Woodbury, NY

The odd-Z Md251 nucleus was studied using combined γ-ray and conversion-electron in-beam spectroscopy. Besides the previously observed rotational band based on the [521]1/2− configuration, another rotational structure has been identified using γ-γ coincidences. The use of electron spectroscopy allowed the rotational bands to be observed over a larger rotational frequency range. Using the transition intensities that depend on the gyromagnetic factor, a [514]7/2− single-particle configuration has been inferred for this band, i.e., the ground-state band. A physical background that dominates the electron spectrum with an intensity of ≃60% was well reproduced by simulating a set of unresolved excited bands. Moreover, a detailed analysis of the intensity profile as a function of the angular momentum provided a method for deriving the orbital gyromagnetic factor, namely gK=0.69−0.16+0.19 for the ground-state band. The odd-Z Md249 was studied using γ-ray in-beam spectroscopy. Evidence for octupole correlations resulting from the mixing of the Δl=Δj=3 [521]3/2− and [633]7/2+ Nilsson orbitals were found in both Md249,251. A surprising similarity of the Md251 ground-state band transition energies with those of the excited band of Lr255 has been discussed in terms of identical bands. Skyrme-Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov calculations were performed to investigate the origin of the similarities between these bands.

The jurogam 3 spectrometer has been constructed for in-beam $$\gamma $$γ-ray spectroscopy experiments in the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. jurogam 3 consists of germanium-detector modules in a compact geometry surrounding a target to measure $$\gamma $$γ rays emitted from radioactive nuclei. jurogam 3 can be employed in conjunction with one of two recoil separators, the mara vacuum-mode separator or the ritu gas-filled separator, and other ancillary devices.

Decay spectroscopy of No250 has been performed using digital electronics and pulse-shape analysis of the fast nuclear decays for the first time. Previous studies of No250 reported two distinct fission decay lifetimes, related to the direct fission of the ground state and to the decay of an isomeric state but without the possibility to determine if the isomeric state decayed directly via fission or via internal electromagnetic transitions to the ground state. The data obtained in the current experiment allowed the puzzle to finally be resolved, attributing the shorter half-life of t1/2=3.8±0.3μs to the ground state and the longer half-life t1/2=34.9−3.2+3.9μs to the decay of an isomeric state. No250 becomes, thus, one of a very few examples of very heavy nuclei with an isomeric state living considerably longer than its ground state. This phenomenon has important consequences for the nuclear-structure models aiming to determine the borders of the island of stability of superheavy elements.

A projectile Coulomb-excitation experiment was performed at the radioactive ion beam facility HIE-ISOLDE at CERN. The radioactive 140Nd and 142Sm ions were post accelerated to the energy of 4.62 MeV/A and impinged on a 1.45 mg/cm2-thin 208Pb target. The γ rays depopulating the Coulomb-excited states were recorded by the HPGe-array MINIBALL. The scattered charged particles were detected by a double-sided silicon strip detector in forward direction. Experimental γ-ray intensities were used for the determination of electromagnetic transition matrix elements. Preliminary results for the reduced transition strength of the B ( M 1 ; 2 3 + → 2 1 + ) = 0.35 ( 19 ) μ N 2 of 140Nd and a first estimation for 142Sm have been deduced using the Coulomb-excitation calculation software GOSIA. The 2 3 + states of 140Nd and 142Sm show indications of being the main fragment of the proton-neutron mixed-symmetry 2 1 , ms + state.

High-spin states in the N = 128 nucleus 218Th have been investigated following fusion–evaporation reactions, using the recoil-decay tagging technique. Due to the short-lived nature of the ground state of 218Th prompt γ rays have been correlated with the α decay of the daughter nucleus 214Ra. The level scheme representing the decay of excited states has been extended to (16+) with the observation of six previously unreported transitions. The observations are compared with the results of shell model calculations and within the context of the systematics of neighbouring nuclei.

AGATA Collaboration, New physics opportunities are opening up by the Advanced Gamma Tracking Array, AGATA, as it evolves to the full 4π instrument. AGATA is a high-resolution γ-ray spectrometer, solely built from highly segmented high-purity Ge detectors, capable of measuring γ rays from a few tens of keV to beyond 10 MeV, with unprecedented efficiency, excellent position resolution for individual γ-ray interactions, and very high count-rate capability. As a travelling detector AGATA will be employed at all major current and near-future European research facilities delivering stable and radioactive ion beams., The AGATA project has been supported by the European Structural Funds FSE FEDER, the Academy of Finland FIRI program, Finland, the Direction de Recherches Fondamentales of CEA, France, the Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules (IN2P3) of CNRS, France, the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF), Germany, the Institute of Nuclear Research of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (ATOMKI), Hungary, the IstitutoNazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Italy, theNational Science Center (NCN), Poland, the Knut and AliceWallenberg foundation (Sweden), the Swedish Research Council, the Conselleria d’Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esport, Generalitat Valenciana and Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Spain, the Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Ara¸stirma Kurumu (TÜBITAK), Turkey, and the United Kingdom Research and Innovation – Science and Technology Facilities Council (UKRI-STFC).

Two new bands have been identified in $^{137}$Nd from a high-statistics JUROGAM II gamma-ray spectroscopy experiment. Constrained density functional theory and particle rotor model calculations are used to assign configurations and investigate the band properties, which are well described and understood. It is demonstrated that these two new bands can be interpreted as chiral partners of previously known three-quasiparticle positive- and negative-parity bands. The newly observed chiral doublet bands in $^{137}$Nd represent an important support to the existence of multiple chiral bands in nuclei. The present results constitute the missing stone in the series of Nd nuclei showing multiple chiral bands, which becomes the most extended sequence of odd–even and even-even nuclei presenting multiple chiral bands in the Segré chart. Two new bands have been identified in $^{137}$Nd from a high-statistics JUROGAM II gamma-ray spectroscopy experiment. Constrained density functional theory and particle rotor model calculations are used to assign configurations and investigate the band properties, which are well described and understood. It is demonstrated that these two new bands can be interpreted as chiral partners of previously known three-quasiparticle positive- and negative-parity bands. The newly observed chiral doublet bands in $^{137}$Nd represent an important support to the existence of multiple chiral bands in nuclei. The present results constitute the missing stone in the series of Nd nuclei showing multiple chiral bands, which becomes the most extended sequence of nuclei presenting multiple chiral bands in the Segr\'e chart.

Data analysis of the Coulomb excitation experiment of the exotic 206Hg nucleus, recently performed at CERN’s HIE-ISOLDE facility, needs to account for the contribution to target excitation due to the strongly-present beam contaminant 130Xe. In this paper, the contamination subtraction procedure is presented.

The extremely neutron-deficient isotopes 177,179Au were studied by means of in-beam ?-ray spectroscopy. Specific tagging techniques, ?-decay tagging in 177Au and isomer tagging in 179Au, were used for these studies. Feeding of positive-parity, nearly spherical states, which are associated with 2d3/2 and 3s1/2 proton-hole configurations, from the 1i13/2 proton-intruder configuration was observed in 177Au. Such a decay path has no precedent in odd-Au isotopes and it is explained by the effect of mixing of wave functions of the initial state. © 2020, 262010 2/0129/17 Science and Technology Facilities Council, STFC European Research Council, ERC: 203481 Academy of Finland: 131665 Agentúra na Podporu V?skumu a V?voja, APVV: APVV-15-0225, The authors express their gratitude to the staff of the Accelerator Laboratory at the University of Jyväskylä for their excellent technical support. This work has been supported by the EU-FP7-IA project ENSAR (No. 262010 ), the Academy of Finland (CoE in Nuclear and Accelerator Based Physics, grant to T.G., Contract No. 131665 ), the European Research Council through the project SHESTRUCT (Grant Agreement No. 203481 ), the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council , the Slovak Research and Development Agency under Contract No. APVV-15-0225 , and the Slovak Grant Agency VEGA (Contract No. 2/0129/17 ).

Excited states in the extremely neutron-deficient nucleus $$^{172}{\mathrm {Pt}}$$172Pt were populated via $$^{96}\mathrm {Ru}(^{78}\mathrm {Kr},2p)$$96Ru(78Kr,2p) and $$^{92}\mathrm {Mo}(^{83}\mathrm {Kr},3n)$$92Mo(83Kr,3n) reactions. The level scheme has been extended up to an excitation energy of $$\approx 5~\hbox {MeV}$$≈5MeV and tentative spin-parity assignments up to $$I^\pi = 18^+$$Iπ=18+. Linear polarization and angular distribution measurements were used to determine the electromagnetic E1 character of the dipole transitions connecting the positive-parity ground-state band with an excited side-band, firmly establishing it as a negative-parity band. The lowest member of this negative-parity structure was firmly assigned spin-parity $$3^-$$3-. In addition, we observed an E3 transition from this $$3^-$$3- state to the ground state, providing direct evidence for octupole collectivity in $$^{172}{\mathrm {Pt}}$$172Pt. Large-scale shell model (LSSM) and total Routhian surface (TRS) calculations have been performed, supporting the interpretation of the $$3^-$$3- state as a collective octupole-vibrational state.

8 pags., 9 figs., We measured absolute cross sections for neutron transfer channels populated in the Rb-94 + Pb-208 binary reaction. Cross sections have been extracted identifying directly the lead isotopes with the high efficiency MINIBALL gamma-ray array coupled to a particle detector combined with a radioactive Rb-94 beam delivered at E-lab = 6.2 MeV/nucleon by the HIE-ISOLDE facility. We observed sizable cross sections in the neutron-rich mass region, where the heavy partner acquires neutrons. A fair agreement between the measured cross sections with those from GRAZING calculations gives confidence in the cross-section predictions of more neutron-rich nuclei produced via a larger number of transferred nucleons., This work was partly supported by the HORIZON 2020 ENSAR2 Grant Agreement no. 654002, and Marie Skłodowska-Curie COFUND (EU-CERN) grant agreement no. 665779, and by STFC (U.K.). This work has been supported in part by the Croatian Science Foundation under Project no. 7194 and in part under Project no. IP-2018-01- 1257, and the German BMBF under contract 05P18PKCIA + Verbundprojekt 05P2018

Thorium was precipitated homogeneously from a thorium nitrate solution by the thermal decomposition products of urea. The kinetics of the hydrolysis were studied at 90 and 100°C by pH measurement during the initial 5 h and the precipitation efficiencies of thorium and radium were measured over a 24 h period. Precipitation of the radium daughters was closely followed with the aim of co-precipitation of radium with thorium. The CO2 formed during urea decomposition dissolved in the solution, forming CO3 2− during the experiment upon reaching a sufficiently high pH level (>7). This allowed radium to co-precipitate partially, thus reducing the activity of the filtrate. After filtration or centrifugation, the precipitate is composed of nanocrystalline thorium dioxide (crystallite size ~10 nm), with weakly bound H2O and CO2.

We report the first proof of principle of an efficient and cost-effective bentchtop alternatives to synchrotron radiation beamlines to perform at laboratory scale Xray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) at the U L3-edge in transmission mode. We find excellent agreement with synchrotron-based studies for concentrated samples, in reasonable acquisition time, for UO2, KUO3 and b-UO3 samples. The approach described here already constitutes an inexpensive answer to the XAS beamline over-subscription in the field of actinide’s research for state of the art experiments. Moreover, our results opens the door to many future applications in the field of actinide’s research, including f-electron chemistry, environmental chemistry and nuclear energy physico-chemistry such as advanced nuclear fuel and long term nuclear waste disposal.

Transmission electron microscopy observation of Kr bubble evolution in polycrystalline UO 2 annealed at high temperature was conducted in order to understand the inert gas behavior in oxide nuclear fuel. The average diameter of intragranular bubbles increased gradually from 0.8 nm in as-irradiated sample at room temperature to 2.6 nm at 1600 °C and the bubble size distribution changed from a uniform distribution to a bimodal distribution above 1300 °C. The size of intergranular bubbles increased more rapidly than intragranular ones and bubble denuded zones near grain boundaries formed in all the annealed samples. It was found that high-angle grain boundaries held bigger bubbles than low-angle grain boundaries. Complementary atomistic modeling was conducted to interpret the effects of grain boundary character on the Kr segregation. The area density of strong segregation sites in the high-angle grain boundaries is much higher than that in the low angle grain boundaries.

The quenching of the experimental spectroscopic factor for proton emission from the short-lived $d_{3/2}$ isomeric state in $^{151m}$Lu was a long-standing problem. In the present work, proton emission from this isomer has been reinvestigated in an experiment at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyv\"{a}skyl\"{a}. The proton-decay energy and half-life of this isomer were measured to be 1295(5) keV and 15.4(8) $\mu$s, respectively, in agreement with another recent study. These new experimental data can resolve the discrepancy in the spectroscopic factor calculated using the spherical WKB approximation. Using the R-matrix approach it is found that the proton formation probability indicates no significant hindrance for the proton decay of $^{151m}$Lu., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures

The charge compensation mechanisms in U 1-x Gd x O 2 and Th 1-x Gd x O 2-x/2 have been systematically studied using X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) upon gradually increasing the Gd content. Gd doped nuclear fuels are widely used for optimizing the fresh core neutronics, yet when Gd 3+ is substituted into U 4+ or Th 4+ lattice position in UO 2 or ThO 2 , respectively, charge must be compensated for charge neutrality. In U 1-x Gd x O 2 the general hypothesis has been that the U 4+ will oxidise to U 5+ /U 6+ while in Th 1-x Gd x O 2-x/2 the fixed Th 4+ valence requires generation of O vacancies. Our XAS results for a series of technologically relevant Gd contents (x = 0.04 to 0.14) in U 1-x Gd x O 2 clearly demonstrate that upon increasing the Gd content U 5+ is formed inducing slight increase in the U coordination number and contraction for the U-O distances while the Gd local environment remains virtually unchanged. For the Th 1-x Gd x O 2-x/2 larger Gd fractions were applied (x = 0.10 to 0.34). Nonetheless, both Gd and Th local environments show changes upon increasing the Gd content; the average Gd-O and Th-O distances decrease gradually and the Gd and Th coordination numbers follow the expected trend considering the O vacancy formation to obtain charge neutrality. Finally, comparison to Gd 2 O 3 allowed us to propose that one of the Gd L 3 -edge XANES resonance features is directly connected to the generation of O vacancies.

Excited states have been identified in the heaviest known even-Z N = 84 isotone 158W, which lies in a region of one-proton emitters and the two-proton drip line. The observation of γ-ray transitions feeding the ground state establishes the excitation energy of the yrast 6+ state confirming the spin-gap nature of the α-decaying 8+ isomer. The 8+ isomer is also expected to be unbound to two-proton emission but no evidence for this decay mode was observed. An upper limit for the two-proton decay branch has been deduced as b 2 p ≤ 0.17% at the 90% confidence level. The possibility of observing two-proton emission from multiparticle isomers in nearby nuclides is considered.

© 2019 American Physical Society. An analysis technique has been developed in order to mitigate energy summing due to sequential short-lived α decays from nuclei implanted into a silicon detector. Using this technique, α-decay spectroscopy of the N=130 isotones Ra218 (Z=88) and Th220 (Z=90) has been performed. The energies of the α particles emitted in the Ra218→Rn214 and Th220→Ra216 ground-state-to-ground-state decays have been measured to be 8381(4) keV and 8818(13) keV, respectively. The half-lives of the ground states of Ra218 and Th220 have been measured to be 25.99(10) μs and 10.4(4) μs, respectively. The half-lives of the ground states of the α-decay daughters, Rn214 and Ra216, have been measured to be 259(3) ns and 161(11) ns, respectively. Fine structure in the α decay of Ra218 has been observed for the first time, populating the 695-keV 21+ state in Rn214. The fine-structure α decay has an α-particle energy of 7715(40) keV and branching ratio bα=0.123(11)%.

The structure of low-spin states originating from shape-coexisting configurations in $^{68}_{40}$Ni$_{28}$ was directly probed via the two-neutron transfer reaction $^{66}$Ni$(t,p)^{68}$Ni in inverse kinematics using a radioactive ion beam on a radioactive target. The direct feeding to the first excited 0$^+$ state was measured for center-of-mass angles 4°–16° and amounts to an integral of 4.2(16)% relative to the ground state. The observed difference in feeding of the 0$^+$ states is explained by the transfer of neutrons, mainly in the $pf$ shell below $N=40$ for the ground state, and across $N=40$ in the $g_{9/2}$ orbital for the 0$_2^+$, based on second-order distorted-wave Born approximation calculations combined with state-of-the-art shell-model two-nucleon amplitudes. However, the direct feeding to the 2$_1^+$ state [29(3)%] is incompatible with these calculations.

Lifetime measurements of excited states in Hg-178 have been performed using the Rh-103(Kr-78, p2n) reaction at a beam energy of 354 MeV. The recoil-decay tagging (RDT) technique was applied to select the Hg-178 nuclei and associate the prompt gamma rays with the correlated characteristic ground-state alpha decay. Lifetimes of the four lowest yrast states of Hg-178 have been determined using the recoil distance Doppler-shift (RDDS) method. The experimental data are compared to theoretical predictions with focus on shape coexistence. The results confirm the shift of the deformed prolate structures to higher lying states but also indicate their increasing deformation with decreasing neutron number.

The Tz=−32 nucleus 21Mg has been studied by Coulomb excitation on 196Pt and 110Pd targets. A 205.6(1)-keV γ-ray transition resulting from the Coulomb excitation of the 52+ ground state to the first excited 12+ state in 21Mg was observed for the first time. Coulomb excitation cross-section measurements with both targets and a measurement of the half-life of the 12+ state yield an adopted value of B(E2;52+→12+)=13.3(4) W.u. A new excited state at 1672(1) keV with tentative 92+ assignment was also identified in 21Mg. This work demonstrates a large difference in the B(E2;52+→12+) value between T=32, A=21 mirror nuclei. The difference is investigated in the shell-model framework employing both isospin conserving and breaking USD interactions and using modern ab initio nuclear structure calculations, which have recently become applicable in the sd shell. (Less)

A Triple-foil differential Plunger for Exotic Nuclei (TPEN) has been developed to measure the lifetimes of excited states in nuclei with small production cross-sections. TPEN utilises one target foil and two degrader foils to make differential lifetime measurements: directly determining the decay function and its derivative at a single plunger distance setting. The direct measurement of the decay function and its derivative removes the requirement to measure γ -ray intensities at several target-to-degrader distances, thereby reducing the beam-time required relative to a conventional plunger with a single-degrader foil. This paper describes the commissioning of TPEN in the lifetime measurement of the first excited 4 + state in 156Dy using this differential lifetime technique. The 46(2) ps measured lifetime was found to be in good agreement with the 45.6(5) ps deduced from a previous high-statistics experiment using a conventional two-foil plunger. A comparison between the differential mode with TPEN, and that using TPEN as a conventional two-foil plunger reveals that it achieves the same statistical accuracy with a ∼ 4 -fold reduction in beam-time in the differential mode, for the reaction and experimental setup used in this work. TPEN opens up new opportunities to study exotic nuclei with lower production cross-sections that were previously not accessible.

In the study of the odd-$Z$, even-$N$ nuclei $^{243}$Es and $^{249}$Md, performed at the University of Jyv\"askyl\"a, the fusion-evaporation reactions $^{197}$Au($^{48}$Ca,2$n$)$^{243}$Es and $^{203}$Tl($^{48}$Ca,2$n$)$^{249}$Md have been used for the first time. Fusion-evaporation residues were selected and detected using the RITU gas-filled separator coupled with the focal-plane spectrometer GREAT. For $^{243}$Es, the recoil decay correlation analysis yielded a half-life of $24 \pm 3$s, and a maximum production cross section of $37 \pm 10$ nb. In the same way, a half-life of $26 \pm 1$ s, an $\alpha$ branching ratio of 75 $\pm$ 5%, and a maximum production cross section of 300 $\pm$ 80 nb were determined for $^{249}$Md. The decay properties of $^{245}$Es, the daughter of $^{249}$Md, were also measured: an $\alpha$ branching ratio of 54 $\pm$ 7% and a half-life of 65 $\pm$ 6 s. Experimental cross sections were compared to the results of calculations performed using the KEWPIE2 statistical fusion-evaporation code.

International audience; Three new highly-deformed (HD) bands are identified in Nd136 and the highly deformed band of Nd137 is extended at higher spin by four transitions, revealing a band crossing associated with the occupation of the second νi13/2 intruder orbital. Extended cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky calculations are performed for all HD bands observed in Nd134, Nd136, and Nd137, achieving for the first time a consistent interpretation of all HD bands in the Nd nuclei. The new interpretation has significant consequences, like the change of parity of the yrast HD bands of Nd134 and Nd136, and the involvement of two negative-parity neutron intruder orbitals in the configurations of most HD bands. The present experimental results and their theoretical interpretation represent an important step forward in the understanding of the second-minimum excitations in the Nd nuclei.

The neutron-deficient mercury isotopes serve as a classical example of shape coexistence, whereby at low energy near-degenerate nuclear states characterized by different shapes appear. The electromagnetic structure of even-mass 182-188 Hg isotopes was studied using safe-energy Coulomb excitation of neutron-deficient mercury beams delivered by the REX-ISOLDE facility at CERN. The population of $ 0^{+}_{1,2}$01,2+, $ 2^{+}_{1,2}$21,2+and $ 4^{+}_{1}$41+states was observed in all nuclei under study. Reduced E2 matrix elements coupling populated yrast and non-yrast states were extracted, including their relative signs. These are a sensitive probe of shape coexistence and may be used to validate nuclear models. The experimental results are discussed in terms of mixing of two different configurations and are compared with three different model calculations: the Beyond Mean Field model, the Interacting Boson Model with configuration mixing and the General Bohr Hamiltonian. Partial agreement with experiment was observed, hinting to missing ingredients in the theoretical descriptions. The neutron-deficient mercury isotopes serve as a classical example of shape coexistence, whereby at low energy near-degenerate nuclear states characterized by different shapes appear. The electromagnetic structure of even-mass 182-188 Hg isotopes was studied using safe-energy Coulomb excitation of neutron-deficient mercury beams delivered by the REX-ISOLDE facility at CERN. The population of $ 0^{+}_{1,2}$01,2+, $ 2^{+}_{1,2}$21,2+and $ 4^{+}_{1}$41+states was observed in all nuclei under study. Reduced E2 matrix elements coupling populated yrast and non-yrast states were extracted, including their relative signs. These are a sensitive probe of shape coexistence and may be used to validate nuclear models. The experimental results are discussed in terms of mixing of two different configurations and are compared with three different model calculations: the Beyond Mean Field model, the Interacting Boson Model with configuration mixing and the General Bohr Hamiltonian. Partial agreement with experiment was observed, hinting to missing ingredients in the theoretical descriptions. ispartof: The European Physical Journal A - Hadrons and Nuclei vol:55 issue:8 pages:130-130 status: published

International audience; A sequence of nine almost equidistant quadrupole transitions is observed in Nd137. The sequence represents an extremely regular rotational band that extends to a spin of about 75/2 and an excitation energy of ≈4.5MeV above yrast. Cranked mean-field calculations of the Nilsson-Strutinsky type suggest an oblate shape for the band. They reproduce the observed I(I+1) dependence of the rotational energy whereas predicting a pronounced decrease in the deformation, which is the hallmark of antimagnetic rotation.

International audience; Multipolarity measurements are presented for transitions in the deformed odd-mass nucleus$^{167}$ Yb in support of tentative spin assignments and level interpretations based upon the cranked-Nilsson model. Internal-conversion coefficients were measured with the SAGE (Silicon And GErmanium) spectrometer confirming several E2 transition assignments. The array of high-purity germanium detectors enabled the recording of high-multiplicity events from which $\gamma\gamma\gamma$ and $\gamma\gamma e^{-}$ data sets were extracted and the technique of high-fold $\gamma$ -ray gating was demonstrated to cleanly isolate transitions of interest.

The first 2+ and 3- states of the doubly magic nucleus Sn132 are populated via safe Coulomb excitation employing the recently commissioned HIE-ISOLDE accelerator at CERN in conjunction with the highly efficient MINIBALL array. The Sn132 ions are accelerated to an energy of 5.49 MeV/nucleon and impinged on a Pb206 target. Deexciting γ rays from the low-lying excited states of the target and the projectile are recorded in coincidence with scattered particles. The reduced transition strengths are determined for the transitions 0g.s.+→21+, 0g.s.+→31-, and 21+→31- in Sn132. The results on these states provide crucial information on cross-shell configurations which are determined within large-scale shell-model and Monte Carlo shell-model calculations as well as from random-phase approximation and relativistic random-phase approximation. The locally enhanced B(E2;0g.s.+→21+) strength is consistent with the microscopic description of the structure of the respective states within all theoretical approaches. The presented results of experiment and theory can be considered to be the first direct verification of the sphericity and double magicity of Sn132. (Less)

A rate theory model informed by multimodal characterization is used to evaluate the concentration of point defects in irradiated materials. Cerium dioxide (CeO2) is used as a model ionic compound, whose cation and anion sublattice point defects evolve independent of each other, but extended defects in the form of dislocation loops retain stoichiometry of the compound. To demonstrate this, we performed extensive measurement of defect evolution in CeO2 exposed to energetic protons at elevated temperature. Two sintered polycrystalline CeO2 samples were irradiated with protons having energies up to 2.5 MeV. Both samples were irradiated at 600°C to a dose of 0.14 dpa, but with different dose rates. These irradiation conditions produced a rich microstructure with resolvable extended defects and a significant concentration of point defects. Dislocation loop density revealed by electron microscopy and lattice constant changes measured by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and mesoscale thermal conductivity measurements were used to parameterize the rate theory model. The model, which includes point defect generation, recombination, and clustering into stoichiometric interstitial loops, suggests a large concentration of cerium vacancies and interstitials is present under these irradiation conditions. This work lays the foundation for expanded multimodal characterization of microstructure, including more direct characterization of point defects using optical spectroscopies.

Two binary Ni-Cr model alloys with 5 wt% Cr and 18 wt% Cr were irradiated using 2 MeV protons at 400 and 500 °C and 20 MeV Ni4+ ions at 500 °C to investigate microstructural evolution as a function of composition, irradiation temperature, and irradiating ion species. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was applied to study irradiation-induced void and faulted Frank loops microstructures. Irradiations at 500 °C were shown to generate decreased densities of larger defects, likely due to increased barriers to defect nucleation as compared to 400 °C irradiations. Heavy ion irradiation resulted in a larger density of smaller voids when compared to proton irradiations, indicating in-cascade clustering of point defects. Cluster dynamics simulations were in good agreement with the experimental findings, suggesting that increases in Cr content lead to an increase in interstitial binding energy, leading to higher densities of smaller dislocation loops in the Ni-18Cr alloy as compared to the Ni-5Cr alloy.