RUI: High Impact Nuclear Physics Research with Undergraduates

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It is a well-known fact that light, stable nuclei, those with which we are most familiar, are made up of roughly equal numbers of protons and neutrons. This project will explore the structure of neutron-rich nuclei that are far from stability and consequently much less familiar. This will provide a vital understanding of the subtleties of the nuclear force in nuclei that can be found in explosive astrophysical environments, such as a supernova. These experiments will help us to understand the different abundances of the observed elements in the universe, in addition to engaging students in the study of these fundamental questions. In addition, the applied nuclear physics efforts at Hope College will use traditional accelerator techniques for the rapid testing of consumer goods and environmental samples containing chemicals of concern. Work on non-destructive characterization of automotive paint samples for forensic applications will continue. Experiments producing unstable nuclei at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Lab (NSCL) (excited states of helium-9 and oxygen-26) will measure decay neutrons with the Modular Neutron Array, while emitted charged fragments are deflected with a high-field dipole magnet into timing and energy detectors. The properties of the decaying nucleus will be determined with invariant mass spectroscopy. Astrophysics measurements will also be done at the NSCL with the Summing NaI Detector supplemented with an internal beta detector or an internal gas cell constructed at Hope College. The interdisciplinary applied physics portion of the proposed research, done with the Hope accelerator, is principally based on particle induced gamma-ray emission, particle induced x-ray emission, and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy.