scholarly journals The NUMEN Project: An Update of the Facility Toward the Future Experimental Campaigns

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Cappuzzello ◽  
Luis Acosta ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Ismail Boztosun ◽  
Giuseppe A. Brischetto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Reaction Products ◽  
Exchange Reactions ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Detection Systems ◽  
Superconducting Cyclotron ◽  
Experimental Yield ◽  
Double Charge

The goal of NUMEN project is to access experimentally driven information on Nuclear Matrix Elements (NME) involved in the neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) by accurate measurements of the cross sections of heavy-ion induced double charge-exchange reactions. In particular, the (18O, 18Ne) and (20Ne, 20O) reactions are adopted as tools for β+β+ and β−β− decays, respectively. The experiments are performed at INFN–Laboratory Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania using the Superconducting Cyclotron to accelerate the beams and the MAGNEX magnetic spectrometer to detect the reaction products. The measured cross sections are very low, limiting the present exploration to few selected isotopes of interest in the context of typically low-yield experimental runs. In order to make feasible a systematic study of all the candidate nuclei, a major upgrade of the LNS facility is foreseen to increase the experimental yield by more than two orders of magnitude. To this purpose, frontier technologies are being developed for both the accelerator and the detection systems. An update description of the NUMEN project is presented here, focusing on recent achievements from the R&D activity.

scholarly journals The nuclear matrix elements of 0νββ decay and the NUMEN project at INFN-LNS

2018 ◽  
Vol 194 ◽  
pp. 02001 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Carbone ◽  
F. Cappuzzello ◽  
C. Agodi ◽  
M. Cavallaro ◽  
L. Acosta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Nuclear Matrix ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Matrix Elements ◽  
Reaction Products ◽  
Structure Information ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Double Charge

The goal of NUMEN project is to access experimentally driven information on Nuclear Matrix Elements (NME) involved in the neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ), by high-accuracy measurements of the cross sections of Heavy Ion (HI) induced Double Charge Exchange (DCE) reactions. The knowledge of the nuclear matrix elements is crucial to infer the neutrino average masses from the possible measurement of the half-life of 00νββ decay and to compare experiments on different isotopes. In particular, the (18O, 18Ne) and (20Ne, 20O) reactions are performed as tools for β+β+ and β-β- decays, respectively. The experiments are performed at INFN - Laboratory Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania using the Superconducting Cyclotron (CS) to accelerate the beams and the MAGNEX magnetic spectrometer to detect the reaction products. The measured cross sections are very low, limiting the present exploration to few selected isotopes of interest in the context of typically low-yield experimental runs. In order to make feasible a systematic study of all the candidate nuclei, a major upgrade of the LNS facility is foreseen to increase the experimental yield of about two orders of magnitude. To this purpose, frontier technologies are going to be developed for both the accelerator and the detection systems. In parallel, advanced theoretical models will be developed to extract the nuclear structure information from the measured cross sections.

scholarly journals Upgrade of the MAGNEX spectrometer toward the high-intensity phase of NUMEN

2021 ◽  
Vol 252 ◽  
pp. 03003
Author(s):  
Manuela Cavallaro ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Giuseppe A. Brischetto ◽  
Salvatore Calabrese ◽  
Daniela Calvo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Exchange Process ◽  
Reaction Cross ◽  
Target System ◽  
Charge Exchange Process ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Detection Systems ◽  
Superconducting Cyclotron ◽  
Plane Detector ◽  
Double Charge

The NUMEN experimental activity with accelerated beams is performed at INFN–Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania using the Superconducting Cyclotron and the MAGNEX magnetic spectrometer. The scientific motivation of NUMEN is to extract experiment-driven information on the nuclear matrix elements entering in the expression of the 0νββ decay half-life. The reaction cross sections involved, especially for the double charge exchange process, are very low, thus limiting the present exploration to a few selected isotopes of interest in the context of typically low-yield experimental runs. In order to make feasible a systematic study of all the candidate nuclei, a major upgrade of the LNS facility is foreseen to increase the experimental yield by more than two orders of magnitude. To this purpose, frontier technologies are being developed for the accelerator and the detection systems. An updated description of the choices derived from the recent R&D activity on the target system and MAGNEX focal plane detector is given.

scholarly journals The NUMEN Heavy Ion Multidetector for a Complementary Approach to the Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay

Universe ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. 129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Finocchiaro ◽  
Luis Acosta ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Carmen Altana ◽  
Paulina Amador-Valenzuela ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Beta Decay ◽  
Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Mass Hierarchy ◽  
Reaction Products ◽  
Exchange Reactions ◽  
Intrinsic Nature ◽  
Experimental Apparatus ◽  
Double Charge

Neutrinos are so far the most elusive known particles, and in the last decades many sophisticated experiments have been set up in order to clarify several questions about their intrinsic nature, in particular their masses, mass hierarchy, intrinsic nature of Majorana or Dirac particles. Evidence of the Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay (NDBD) would prove that neutrinos are Majorana particles, thus improving the understanding of the universe itself. Besides the search for several large underground experiments for the direct experimental detection of NDBD, the NUMEN experiment proposes the investigation of a nuclear mechanism strongly linked to this decay: the Double Charge Exchange reactions (DCE). As such reactions share with the NDBD the same initial and final nuclear states, they could shed light on the determination of the Nuclear Matrix Elements (NMEs), which play a relevant role in the decay. The physics of DCE is described elsewhere in this issue, while the focus of this paper will be on the challenging experimental apparatus currently under construction in order to fulfil the requirements of the NUMEN experiment. The overall structure of the technological improvement to the cyclotron, along with the newly developed detection systems required for tracking and identifying the reaction products and their final excitation level are described.

scholarly journals Recent experimental activity on heavy-ion induced reactions within the NUMEN project

2021 ◽  
Vol 252 ◽  
pp. 04001
Author(s):  
Francesco Cappuzzello ◽  
Luis Acosta ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Carmen Altana ◽  
Paulina Amador-Valenzuela ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Matrix Elements ◽  
Exchange Reactions ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Experimental Activity ◽  
Reaction Data ◽  
Direct Reactions ◽  
Double Charge ◽  
Extract Information

The possibility to use a special class of heavy-ion induced direct reactions, such as double charge exchange reactions, is discussed in view of their application to extract information that may be helpful to determinate the nuclear matrix elements entering in the expression of neutrinoless double beta decay half-life. The strategies adopted in the experimental campaigns performed at INFN - Laboratori Nazionali del Sud are briefly described, emphasizing the advantages of the multi-channel approach to nuclear reaction data analysis.

The NUMEN Technical Design Report

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Cappuzzello ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Luciano Calabretta ◽  
Daniela Calvo ◽  
Diana Carbone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Beta Decay ◽  
Cross Section ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
Body Wave ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Formal Similarity ◽  
Basic Point ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Double Charge

NUMEN proposes an innovative technique to access the nuclear matrix elements entering the expression of the lifetime of the double beta decay by cross-section measurements of heavy-ion induced Double Charge Exchange (DCE) reactions. Despite the fact that the two processes, namely neutrinoless double beta decay and DCE reactions, are triggered by the weak and strong interaction respectively, important analogies are suggested. The basic point is the coincidence of the initial and final state many-body wave functions in the two types of processes and the formal similarity of the transition operators. The main experimental tools for this project are the K800 Superconducting Cyclotron and MAGNEX spectrometer at the INFN-LNS laboratory. However, the tiny values of DCE cross-sections and the resolution requirements demand beam intensities much higher than those manageable with the present facility. The on-going upgrade of the INFN-LNS facilities promoted by the POTLNS * project in this perspective is intimately connected to the NUMEN project. This paper describes the solutions proposed as a result of the R&D activity performed during the recent years. The goal is to develop suitable technologies allowing for the measurements of DCE cross-section under extremely high beam intensities. * PIR01_00005 — potenziamento dell’infrastruttura di ricerca Laboratori Nazionali del Sud per la produzione di fasci di ioni ad alta intensitá.

scholarly journals Recent results on heavy-ion induced reactions of interest for neutrinoless double beta decay at INFN-LNS

2019 ◽  
Vol 223 ◽  
pp. 01009
Author(s):  
Manuela Cavallaro ◽  
Luis Acosta ◽  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Carmen Altana ◽  
Paulina Amador-Valenzuela ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Beta Decay ◽  
Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Exchange Reactions ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Experimental Campaign ◽  
Direct Reactions ◽  
Double Charge ◽  
Extract Information

The possibility to use a special class of heavy-ion induced direct reactions, such as double charge exchange reactions, is discussed in view of their application to extract information that may be helpful to determinate the nuclear matrix elements entering in the expression of neutrinoless double beta decay half-life. The methodology of the experimental campaign presently running at INFN - Laboratori Nazionali del Sud is reported andthe experimental challenges characterizing such activity are described.

scholarly journals The NUMEN Project: Toward New Experiments with High-Intensity Beams

Universe ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 72
Author(s):  
Clementina Agodi ◽  
Antonio D. Russo ◽  
Luciano Calabretta ◽  
Grazia D’Agostino ◽  
Francesco Cappuzzello ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cross Section ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
High Intensity ◽  
Particle Physics ◽  
Nuclear Physics ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Experimental Information ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Superconducting Cyclotron ◽  
Double Charge

The search for neutrinoless double-beta (0νββ) decay is currently a key topic in physics, due to its possible wide implications for nuclear physics, particle physics, and cosmology. The NUMEN project aims to provide experimental information on the nuclear matrix elements (NMEs) that are involved in the expression of 0νββ decay half-life by measuring the cross section of nuclear double-charge exchange (DCE) reactions. NUMEN has already demonstrated the feasibility of measuring these tiny cross sections for some nuclei of interest for the 0νββ using the superconducting cyclotron (CS) and the MAGNEX spectrometer at the Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS.) Catania, Italy. However, since the DCE cross sections are very small and need to be measured with high sensitivity, the systematic exploration of all nuclei of interest requires major upgrade of the facility. R&D for technological tools has been completed. The realization of new radiation-tolerant detectors capable of sustaining high rates while preserving the requested resolution and sensitivity is underway, as well as the upgrade of the CS to deliver beams of higher intensity. Strategies to carry out DCE cross-section measurements with high-intensity beams were developed in order to achieve the challenging sensitivity requested to provide experimental constraints to 0νββ NMEs.

scholarly journals Two-step description of heavy ion double charge exchange reactions

2020 ◽  
Vol 807 ◽  
pp. 135528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica I. Bellone ◽  
Stefano Burrello ◽  
Maria Colonna ◽  
José-Antonio Lay ◽  
Horst Lenske
Keyword(s):  
Charge Exchange ◽  
Heavy Ion ◽  
Exchange Reactions ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
Double Charge

scholarly journals Recent results for the one-proton transfer reaction in the 18O+48Ti collision at 275 MeV

2021 ◽  
Vol 252 ◽  
pp. 04002
Author(s):  
O. Sgouros ◽  
M. Cavallaro ◽  
F. Cappuzzello ◽  
D. Carbone ◽  
C. Agodi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Proton Transfer ◽  
Nuclear Matrix Element ◽  
Proton Transfer Reaction ◽  
Double Beta Decay ◽  
Particle Identification ◽  
Reaction Products ◽  
Present Contribution ◽  
Double Charge Exchange ◽  
The One ◽  
Double Charge

The 18O+48Ti reaction was studied at the energy of 275 MeV for the first time under the NUMEN and NURE experimental campaigns with the aim to investigate the complete net of reaction channels potentially involved in the 48Ca→48Ti double charge exchange transition. Such a transition is of great interest because of its relevance to the extraction of 48Ca→48Ti double beta decay nuclear matrix element. The relevant experiment was carried out at the MAGNEX facility of INFN-LNS in Catania. Angular distribution measurements for the various reaction products were performed by using the MAGNEX large acceptance magnetic spectrometer. The present contribution is focused on the analysis of the one-proton transfer channel with emphasis on the particle identification technique and the estimation of background contaminations.

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