DOE OSTI · 3599469
Magnetic character of the low-energy enhancement in 70 Zn
Abstract
The transition of an atomic nucleus from an excited state to a state of lower energy is typically accompanied by the emission of photons. The likelihood of photon emission is a function of the photon energy and of properties of the initial and final nuclear states and is known as the photon (or γ-ray) strength function (γSF). Of the features present in the γSF, an enhancement in the low-energy region has been observed in some nuclei, but the electromagnetic nature of this enhancement remains an open question. This low-energy enhancement in the γSF significantly impacts our understanding of how elements are created in stars and the structure of the nucleus. Here we present the results from an experiment on the γSF of 70 Zn that show that the enhancement in the γSF of this nucleus is of magnetic nature. This observation helps address a long-open question about γSFs in atomic nuclei and directly impacts our predictive capabilities in nuclear science.
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Ronning, E. K. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States); Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Padua (Italy)] (ORCID:0009000646725834), Richard, A. L. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Ohio University, Athens, OH (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)] (ORCID:000000018308688X), Liddick, S. N. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:000000031589891X), Spyrou, A. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000286428352), Ringle, R. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:000000027478259X), Arora, H. [Central Michigan University, Mt Pleasant, MI (United States); Institute for Basic Science, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)], Berg, H. C. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000320901255), Berkman, J. M. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000197530096), Bleuel, D. L. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000327920715), Bosmpotinis, K. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)], Campbell, S. E. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000520532711), Chen, X. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000335138870), Crider, B. P. [Mississippi State University, MS (United States)] (ORCID:0000000171538762), Coleman, R. J. [University of Guelph, ON (Canada)], DeYoung, P. A. [Hope College, Holland, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000198990716), Doetsch, A. A. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)], Erington, H. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000544333020), Gaballah, T. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Mississippi State University, MS (United States)], Gamage, N. D. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000156572081), Good, E. C. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000177656188), Greaves, B. [University of Guelph, ON (Canada); Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Legnaro (Italy)], Hartley, A. C. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States); University of Mount Union, Alliance, OH (United States)], Huffman, J. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000015361624), Ireland, C. M. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000240791567), Izzo, C. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241191654), Jain, R. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000198591512), Larsen, A. C. [University of Oslo (Norway)] (ORCID:0000000221883709), Larsson, J. E. L. [Technische Universität Darmstadt (Germany); GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung GmbH, Darmstadt (Germany); Helmholtz Forschungsakademie Hessen für FAIR (HFHF), Darmstadt (Germany)], Lubna, R. S. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)], Maier, F. M. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)], Mogannam, M. J. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States); Air Force Institute of Technology, Dayton, OH (United States)], Mücher, D. [University of Cologne (Germany)], Mumpower, M. R. [Obsidian Research, Fort Wayne, IN (United States); University of Notre Dame, IN (United States); Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Center for Theoretical Astrophysics, Los Alamos, NM (United States)], Owens-Fryar, G. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000167286494), Ogunbeku, T. H. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000244427757), Scriven, D. P. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000238532200), Smith, M. K. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)], Sumithrarachchi, C. S. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0009000931230937), Sweet, A. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)], Taft, K. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); University of Notre Dame, IN (United States)], Tsantiri, A. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States); Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI (United States); University of Regina, SK (Canada); University of Victoria, BC (Canada)] (ORCID:0000000297593476), Uthayakumaar, S. [Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, East Lansing, MI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000231540734), Wiedeking, M. [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000349833882). 2026-07-15. Magnetic character of the low-energy enhancement in 70 Zn. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-026-10758-3
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