Conveners
Session 1: Opening Session (Mixed Topics)
- Iyabo Usman (University of the Witwatersrand)
Description
Mixed Topics
Xenon detector experiments have provided some of the most sensitive searches of physics beyond the standard model (BSM). These campaigns have placed emphasis on observing dark matter interactions and/or neutrinoless double beta decays (0ν2β). Several next-generation experiments aim to build on this work and probe for BSM physics with significantly improved sensitivity. In relation to the...
Coulomb excitation is a well-established and powerful experimental technique for probing the structure and dynamics of nuclei in a model-independent way. The technique is especially sensitive to the quadrupole shape degrees of freedom as it selectively excites low-lying collective states with cross sections that directly measure the E2 matrix elements involved in the excitation. In particular,...
Nuclei along N=20 provide an excellent region to investigate the change in nuclear structure and interactions. From their evolution from the doubly magic nucleus $^{40}$Ca through to the Z=16 and Z=14 nuclei $^{36}$S and $^{34}$Si, respectively, to $^{32}$Mg with a deformed $2p-2h$ intruder ground state [1]. The mechanism responsible for the change in shell structure is not well understood and...
