News

The 30P(p, γ)31S reaction acts as a bottleneck for classical nova nucleosynthesis beyond A=30 in ONe novae, due in part to the long lifetime of 30P (∼2.5 minutes) with respect […]

The results are out from the March 31-April 1 2021 ATLAS Program Advisory Committee. Five GODDESS proposals were submitted, encompassing 55 collaborators, representing 14 institutions across four countries. All 5 […]

Neutron-transfer reactions with radioactive-ion beams (RIBs) probe the single-neutron components of the nuclear wave function, which are needed to deduce the direct semi-direct (DSD) component of neutron capture. With N=50, […]

γ-ray spectroscopy of astrophysically important states in 19Ne M.R. Hall, D.W. Bardayan, T. Baugher, A. Lepailleur, S.D. Pain, A. Ratkiewicz, et al., Phys. Rev. C 101, 015804 19Ne is an important […]

The 38K(d,p) experiment, halted in March due to the COVID-19 outbreak, resumed and has been successfully and safely completed under tight COVID-19 working restrictions. The experiment, employing ORRUBA at the […]

Graduate student Rajesh Ghimire has received a Graduate Advancement Training and Education Award from the Science Alliance, a Center of Excellence established to advance cooperative research between the University of […]

The ORRUBA experiment the NSCL, studying mirror states to constrain the 38K(p,g) bottleneck reaction, has been halted due to COVID-19 as NSCL operations are paused following the State of Michigan’s […]

Measurement of the 7Li(γ,t)4He ground-state cross section between Eγ = 4.4 and 10 MeV M. Munch, C. Matei, S. D. Pain, et al., Phys. Rev. C 101, 055801 The 7Li(γ,t)4He ground state […]

γ-ray spectroscopy of astrophysically important states in 39Ca M.R. Hall, D.W. Bardayan, T. Baugher, A. Lepailleur, S.D. Pain, A. Ratkiewicz, et al., Phys. Rev. C 101, 015804 Background: Nova explosions synthesize elements […]

Researchers developed a state-of-the-art charged particle detector at ORNL called the Oak Ridge Rutgers University Barrel Array, or ORRUBA, to study reactions with beams of astrophysically important radioactive nuclei.

Direct neutron capture cross section on 80Ge and probing shape coexistence in neutron-rich nuclei S. Ahn, D.W. Bardayan, K.L. Jones, et al., PRC 100 044613 Results are presented from the first neutron-transfer […]

The first UK-US DRACULA Workshop was held at ORNL on 26th-27th September. The Workshop was hosted by JINPA and organized by Steve Pain. DRACULA is a proposed (University of Surrey, UK) new particle detector optimized for fast-beam experiments at FRIB. The […]

“Our collaboration of more than 50 scientists brought GODDESS to ATLAS for this and a number of other experiments probing nuclear structure and astrophysics. ATLAS is currently the only place in the world with the marriage of equipment and beams we need to effectively study these reactions.” — Steven Pain, research scientist, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Constraining spectroscopic factors near the r-process path using combined measurements: 86Kr(d,p)87Kr D. Walter, S. D. Pain, J. A. Cizewski, F. M. Nunes et al., Phys. Rev. C. 99, 054625 Background: Modern nuclear structure […]

Informing direct neutron capture on tin isotopes near the N=82 shell closure B. Manning, G. Arbanas, J. A. Cizewski, R. L. Kozub, et al., Phys. Rev. C. 99, 041302(R) Half of the elements […]

New γ-ray transitions observed in 19Ne with implications for the 15O(α,γ)19Ne reaction rate M.R. Hall, D.W. Bardayan, T. Bauger, A. Lepailleur, A. Ratkiewicz, et al., Phys. Rev. C 101, 015804 The 15O(α,γ)19Ne reaction is responsible for breakout […]

M. Hall et al., Phys. Rev. Lett 122, 052701 (2019) Detection of nuclear-decay γ rays provides a sensitive thermometer of nova nucleosynthesis. The most intense γ-ray flux is thought to […]

Dr Matthew Hall PhD Thesis, University of Notre Dame (2019) Nova explosions occur on the surface of a white dwarf that has accreted mass from a less-evolved companion star. Because […]

These results will help benchmark theoretical models and guide future investigations of unstable nuclei with even greater neutron surpluses.

Dr David Walter PhD Thesis, Rutgers University (October 2018) Modern nuclear structure models suggest that the shell structure near the valley of stability, with well-established shell closures at N=50, for […]