Speaker
Description
Understanding nuclear structure requires precise experimental data on ground-state properties across isotopic chains. Collinear Laser Spectroscopy (CLS) provides a powerful means to determine nuclear spins, magnetic dipole and electric quadrupole moments, and changes in the mean square charge radii through measurements of hyperfine structures and isotope shifts. However, extending these studies to light elements such as fluorine remains particularly challenging due to low trapping efficiencies, their strong tendency to form molecular compounds, and the difficulty of reaching the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) wavelength range required for transitions from the ground state of both atomic and ionic species.
To overcome these limitations, a new experimental setup has been developed within the Laser Induced Atomic Fluorescence and Ionization (LIAF) laboratory at COLLAPS, ISOLDE-CERN. This configuration combines CLS with a complementary state-selective collisional ionization technique within a gas cell, enabling spectroscopy on continuous ion beams of short-lived isotopes in the light-element region.
Our work focuses on determining the optimal experimental parameters for the study of fluorine isotopes using this combined approach. In this context, three optical transitions were investigated—at 677 nm, 685 nm, and 690 nm. The influences of different buffer gases (He, Ar, and SF₆), gas target pressures, and laser powers were systematically evaluated, using the quality of the re-ionization signal as the performance criterion. These developments aim to establish a robust experimental methodology for future investigations of light exotic nuclei, providing stringent benchmarks for nuclear models and advancing our understanding of nuclear structure far from stability.
