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SYKL: Symposium Kernphysik mit starken Laserfeldern

SYKL 1: Resonant laser-nucleus interactions

SYKL 1.1: Invited Talk

Tuesday, March 11, 2008, 08:30–09:00, 1A

Status of research into isomer depletion reactions — •James J. Carroll — Department of Physics and Astronomy, Youngstown State University, One University Plaza, Youngstown, Ohio 44555 USA

Nuclear isomers are attractive targets for study since their very existence reflects specific structural barriers to transitions between them and other nuclear levels. An inhibition of isomer decay corresponds to an intriguing ability to store energy at high densities, particularly for long-lived isomers with half-lives longer than a day. Apart from a basic physical interest in isomerism, the potential for practical applications of this form of energy storage has provided an additional impetus for research. To this point, experimental studies have primarily focused on resonant interactions between nuclei and external stimulae, like photons, by which to induce a depletion of isomeric populations through intermediate states. Currently induced depletion has been demonstrated for three isomers, ^180mTa, ^177mLu and ^68mCu, and additional tests are underway or anticipated for other isomers. The cross sections for resonant depletion reactions appear to be relatively small. However, non-resonant processes like NEET and NEEC have been suggested as means of enhancing the efficiency of isomer depletion through a coupling between atomic and nuclear transitions. This talk will survey the status of research into resonant depletion of isomers and look ahead to new directions related to non-resonant processes.