Speaker
Description
Electric monopole (E0) transition studies focus on nuclear transitions between states of the same spin and parity (typically $0^{+}\rightarrow 0^{+}$), which are critical for probing nuclear structure, shape coexistence, and deformation. The E0 strengths ($\rho ^{2}(E0)$) are key parameters to understanding nuclear shape mixing and isomerism in various nuclei, including light, odd-A, and shape-coexistence in nuclei.
Because single-photon emission is forbidden, these transitions are measured via internal conversion electrons (ICE) or electron-positron pair formation (IPF), serving as a sensitive indicator of changes in the mean-squared charge radius.
As such, high-precision electron spectrometers (e.g., Si(Li) detectors) and detector arrays consisting of HPGe and LaBr3:Ce detectors are used to measure internal conversion coefficients (ICC) to identify E0 components.
iThemba LABS has, in the last 5 to 10 years, been developing spectrometers suited for E0 transition studies. This talk will focus on the in-house refurbishment of the existing solenoid magnetic lens into an electron and internal-pairs spectrometer, the in-beam experiment involving 30 MeV proton beam on a $^{50}$Ti target aimed at investigating the excited 0$^{+}_{2}$ state in $^{50}$Ti, as well as future experimental possibilities, for example when this facility will be used in conjunction with other existing spectrometers like the K600.
