MRI: Acquisition of an Accelerator for Stellar Nucleosynthesis Measurements

该合同将使获得最先进的5MV Pelletron加速器能够继续并显著扩展圣母大学核结构实验室（NSL）核天体物理项目的广泛实验能力。在过去的几十年里，国家物理实验室的核天体物理项目以其对恒星燃烧条件下核反应的科学研究而享誉国际。主要目标是利用互补的实验技术，探测对恒星氢、氦和碳燃烧至关重要的低能聚变反应。新的加速器将大大提高实验室目前的实验能力，补充目前和未来在地下测量方面的努力。新的加速器还将使新设计的圣乔治反冲分离器的逆运动学技术的发展成为可能，该分离器使用强烈的低能重离子束。这些技术有望在低能量反应测量的效率和背景降低方面取得重大进展，成为地下加速器方法的独特替代或补充。5mv重离子加速器开辟了新的研究途径和机会，将显著增强实验室在接近恒星氢、氦和碳燃烧的能量条件下测量关键核反应的能力。一个新的加速器，加上反冲质量分离器，将使NSL成为一个独特的和世界领先的设施，用于研究恒星演化各个阶段的核过程。国家物理实验室是核天体物理学领域国际领先的实验项目之一。该计划吸引了世界各地的许多合作者；仅在2007年，NSL就有68个外部用户，来自17个美国机构和15个外国国家。该实验室为大量核物理专业研究生（目前21名）和本科生（每年15名）提供培训和教育机会，其中少数民族和女性学生占30%。直接使用加速器以及进行或开发小规模实验的机会提供了宝贵的培训。因此，ND的学生在工业、学术界和国家实验室的就业市场上都非常成功。在夏季，NSL通过ND JINA外展和REU/RET计划接待多达10名额外的本科生和2名高中教师，以及大约10-15名高中生。新的加速器还将加强在过去五年中在ND开发的基于加速器的核应用计划。该项目引入了非物理教师，使他们受益于其领域的新分析方法，并吸引他们的学生进入NSL，以利用新的研究机会。

This award will enable acquisition of a state-of-the-art 5MV Pelletron accelerator to continue and significantly expand the broad portfolio of experimental capabilities for the nuclear astrophysics program at the Nuclear Structure Laboratory (NSL) at Notre Dame University. Over the last decades, the nuclear astrophysics program at NSL has gained international prominence with its scientific focus on the study of nuclear reactions at stellar burning conditions. The main goal is to probe low energy fusion reactions critical for stellar hydrogen, helium and carbon burning, using complementary experimental techniques. The new accelerator will significantly enhance the present experimental capabilities of the laboratory, complementing present and future efforts in underground measurements. The new accelerator also will enable the development of inverse kinematics techniques at the newly designed St. George recoil separator using intense low energy, heavy-ion beams. These techniques promise significant advances in efficiency and background reduction for low energy reaction measurements, emerging as a unique alternative or complement to the underground accelerator approach. The 5 MV heavy-ion accelerator opens new research avenues and opportunities that will significantly enhance the laboratory's capability to measure key nuclear reactions at energy conditions close to stellar hydrogen, helium, and carbon burning. A new accelerator, coupled to the recoil mass separator, will make the NSL a unique and world-leading facility for the study of the nuclear processes in all phases of stellar evolution. The NSL operates one of the leading international experimental programs in nuclear astrophysics. The program attracts many collaborators worldwide; in 2007 alone the NSL had 68 outside users from 17 US institutions and 15 foreign countries. The laboratory provides training and education opportunities for a large number of ND graduate students (presently 21) and undergraduate students (15 annually) in nuclear physics with up to 30% minority and female students. Direct access to the accelerator and the opportunity to perform or develop small-scale experiments provides invaluable training. As a consequence, ND students are extremely successful in the job market in industry, academia, and national laboratories. During the summer months, the NSL hosts up to 10 additional undergraduate students and 2 high school teachers with approximately 10-15 high school students through the ND JINA outreach and REU/RET program. The new accelerator also will strengthen the accelerator-based nuclear applications program that was developed at ND over the last five years. This program introduces non-physics faculty to the benefit of new analytical methods in their fields and attracts their students into the NSL to take advantage of new research opportunities.