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The Reactions with Relativistic Radioactive Beams (R 3 B) collaboration of the Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) in Darmstadt, Germany, has constructed an experimental setup to perform fundamental studies of nuclear matter, using as a probe reactions with exotic nuclei at relativistic energies. Among the various detection systems, one of the most recent upgrades consists of the installation of a large area, around 2 m 2 , multi-gap Resistive Plate Chamber (RPC). The chamber is equipped with twelve 0. 3 mm gaps and readout by 30 mm pitch strips, exhibiting a timing precision down to 50 ps and efficiencies above 98% for minimum ionizing particles in a previous characterization of the detector. The RPC was part of the setup of the FAIR Phase 0 experiment that focused on measuring for the first time, in spring 2022, nucleon–nucleon short-range correlations (SRC) inside an exotic nucleus (16C). The excellent timing precision of this detector will allow the measurement of the forward emitted proton momentum with a resolution of around 1%. In beam measurements show an RPC efficiency above 95% and a time precision better than 100 ps (including the contribution of a reference scintillator and the momentum spread of the particles) for forward emitted particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Resistive plate chamber (RPC) prototypes of 2m length were simulated and built. The experimental tests using a 31MeV electron beam, discussed in details, showed an efficiency higher than 90% and an excellent time resolution of around . Furthermore, comprehensive simulations were performed by Geant4 toolkit in order to study the possible use of these RPCs for fast neutron (200MeV–1GeV) detection and multi-neutron event identification. The validation of simulation parameters was carried out via a comparison to experimental data. A possible setup for invariant mass spectroscopy of multi-neutron emission is presented and the characteristics are discussed. The results show that the setup has a high detection efficiency. Its capability of determining the momentum of the outgoing neutrons and reconstructing the relative energy between the fragments from nuclear reactions is demonstrated for different scenarios. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The NeuLAND detector at the R3B experiment at the future FAIR facility in Darmstadt aims to detect fast neutrons (0.2–1.0GeV) with high time and spatial resolutions . This task can be performed either with a scintillator or based on the multigap resistive plate chamber (MRPC) technology. Here, prototyping and test for an MRPC-based solution are discussed. In order to reach 90% detection efficiency, the final detector must consist of 50 consecutive MRPC stacks. Each stack contains a 4mm thick anode made of iron converter material, with an additional 4mm of converter material between two stacks. The secondary charged particles stemming from hadronic interactions of the high energetic neutrons in the converter will be detected in the MRPCs. As part of the ongoing development effort, a number of prototypes for this detector have been developed and built. They have been tested in experiments with a single-electron beam with picosecond resolution at the superconducting linac ELBE (Dresden, Germany). The results of the tests are presented here, and an outlook is given. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A new technique to measure the lifetime τ of a neutron-radioactive nucleus that decays in-flight via neutron emission is presented and demonstrated utilizing MonteCarlo simulations. The method is based on the production of the neutron-unbound nucleus in a target, which at the same time slows down the produced nucleus and the residual nucleus after (multi-) neutron emission. The spectrum of the velocity difference of neutron(s) and the residual nucleus has a characteristic shape, that allows to extract the lifetime. If the decay happens outside the target there will be a peak in the spectrum, while events where the decay is in the target show a broad flat distribution due to the continuous slowing down of the residual nucleus. The method itself and the analysis procedure are discussed in detail for the specific candidate 26 O. A stack of targets with decreasing target thicknesses can expand the measurable lifetime range and improve the sensitivity by increasing the ratio between decays outside and inside the target. The simulations indicate a lower limit of measurable lifetime τ ∼ 0 . 2 ps for the given conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Recent results from a first irradiation of multi-gap resistive plate chambers with fast neutrons are presented. The counters have been built at GSI and FZD. The experiment was performed at the “The Svedberg Laboratory” (TSL) in Uppsala, Sweden, utilizing a quasi-monoenergetic neutron beam with an energy E n =175MeV. For a 2×4 gap prototype operated at E=100kV/cm, an efficiency of (0.77 ±0.33)% was measured. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The CALIFA calorimeter is an advanced detector for gamma rays and light charged particles, accordingly optimized for the demanding requirements of the physics programme proposed for the R 3 B facility at FAIR. The multipurpose character of CALIFA is required to fulfil challenging demands in energy resolution (5–6% at 1 MeV for gamma rays) and efficiency. Charged particles, e.g. protons of energies up to 320 MeV in the Barrel section, should also be identified with an energy resolution better to 1%. CALIFA is divided into two well-separated sections: a “Forward EndCap” and a cylindrical “Barrel” covering an angular range from 43.2° to 140.3°. The Barrel section, based on long CsI(Tl) pyramidal frustum crystals coupled to large area avalanche photodiodes (LAAPDs), attains the requested high efficiency for calorimetric purposes. The construction of the CALIFA Demonstrator, comprising 20% of the total detector, has already been initiated, and commissioning experiments are expected for 2014. The assessment of the capabilities and expected performance of the detector elements is a crucial step in their design, along with the prototypes evaluation. For this purpose, the Barrel geometry has been carefully implemented in the simulation package R3BRoot, including easily variable thicknesses of crystal wrapping and carbon fibre supports. A complete characterization of the calorimeter response (including efficiency, resolution, evaluation of energy and reconstruction losses) under different working conditions, with several physics cases selected to probe the detector performance over a wide range of applications, has been undertaken. Prototypes of different sections of the CALIFA Barrel have been modeled and their responses have been evaluated and compared with the experimental results. The present paper summarizes the outcome of the simulation campaign for the entire Barrel section and for the corresponding prototypes tested at different European installations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The existing Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence (NRF) setup at the facility at the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory at Duke University has been extended in order to perform coincidence experiments. The new setup combines large volume detectors and high resolution HPGe detectors in a very close geometry to offer high efficiency, high energy resolution as well as high count rate capabilities at the same time. The combination of a highly efficient spectroscopy setup with the mono-energetic high-intensity photon beam of provides a worldwide unique experimental facility to investigate the pattern of dipole excitations in atomic nuclei. The performance of the new setup has been assessed by studying the nucleus 32S at 8.125MeV beam energy. The relative branching ratio from the 1+ level at 8125.4keV to the first excited 2+ state was determined to 15.7(3)%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The discriminant-analysis method has been applied to optimize the exotic-beam charge recognition in a projectile fragmentation experiment. The experiment was carried out at the GSI using the fragment separator (FRS) to produce and select the relativistic secondary beams, and the ALADIN setup to measure their fragmentation products following collisions with Sn target nuclei. The beams of neutron poor isotopes around 124La and 107Sn were selected to study the isospin dependence of the limiting temperature of heavy nuclei by comparing with results for stable 124Sn projectiles. A dedicated detector to measure the projectile charge upstream of the reaction target was not used, and alternative methods had to be developed. The presented method, based on the multivariate discriminant analysis, allowed to increase the efficacy of charge recognition up to about 90%, which was about 20% more than achieved with the simple scalar methods. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Hadrontherapy treatments use charged particles (e.g. protons and carbon ions) to treat tumors. During a therapeutic treatment with carbon ions, the beam undergoes nuclear fragmentation processes giving rise to significant yields of secondary charged particles. An accurate prediction of these production rates is necessary to estimate precisely the dose deposited into the tumours and the surrounding healthy tissues. Nowadays, a limited set of double differential carbon fragmentation cross-section is available. Experimental data are necessary to benchmark Monte Carlo simulations for their use in hadrontherapy. The purpose of the FIRST experiment is to study nuclear fragmentation processes of ions with kinetic energy in the range from 100 to 1000 MeV/u. Tracks are reconstructed using information from a pixel silicon detector based on the CMOS technology. The performances achieved using this device for hadrontherapy purpose are discussed. For each reconstruction step (clustering, tracking and vertexing), different methods are implemented. The algorithm performances and the accuracy on reconstructed observables are evaluated on the basis of simulated and experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The performance of the LAND neutron detector is studied. Using an event-mixing technique based on one-neutron data obtained in the S107 experiment at the GSI laboratory, we test the efficiency of various analytic tools used to determine the multiplicity and kinematic properties of detected neutrons. A new algorithm developed recently for recognizing neutron showers from spectator decays in the ALADIN experiment S254 is described in detail. Its performance is assessed in comparison with other methods. The properties of the observed neutron events are used to estimate the detection efficiency of LAND in this experiment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The FIRST (Fragmentation of Ions Relevant for Space and Therapy) experiment at the SIS accelerator of GSI laboratory in Darmstadt has been designed for the measurement of ion fragmentation cross-sections at different angles and energies between 100 and 1000MeV/nucleon. Nuclear fragmentation processes are relevant in several fields of basic research and applied physics and are of particular interest for tumor therapy and for space radiation protection applications. The start of the scientific program of the FIRST experiment was on summer 2011 and was focused on the measurement of 400MeV/nucleon 12C beam fragmentation on thin (8mm) graphite target. The detector is partly based on an already existing setup made of a dipole magnet (ALADiN), a time projection chamber (TP-MUSIC IV), a neutron detector (LAND) and a time of flight scintillator system (TOFWALL). This pre-existing setup has been integrated with newly designed detectors in the Interaction Region, around the carbon target placed in a sample changer. The new detectors are a scintillator Start Counter, a Beam Monitor drift chamber, a silicon Vertex Detector and a Proton Tagger scintillator system optimized for the detection of light fragments emitted at large angles. In this paper we review the experimental setup, then we present the simulation software, the data acquisition system and finally the trigger strategy of the experiment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A new analysis procedure has been developed for the large-area scintillating fibre detectors with position-sensitive photomultiplier (PSPM) readout used for heavy ions in the LAND set-up at GSI. It includes gain matching of the PSPM, calibration of the PSPM fibre mask and hit reconstruction. This procedure allows for a quasi-online calibration of this tracking device. It also allows for a precise determination of the position close to the intrinsic detector resolution of 1mm pitch together with careful treatment of individual event accuracies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

NeuLAND (New Large-Area Neutron Detector) is the next-generation neutron detector for the R3B (Reactions with Relativistic Radioactive Beams) experiment at FAIR (Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research). NeuLAND detects neutrons with energies from 100 to 1000 MeV, featuring a high detection efficiency, a high spatial and time resolution, and a large multi-neutron reconstruction efficiency. This is achieved by a highly granular design of organic scintillators: 3000 individual submodules with a size of 5 × 5 × 250 cm3 are arranged in 30 double planes with 100 submodules each, providing an active area of 250 × 250 cm2 and a total depth of 3 m. The spatial resolution due to the granularity together with a time resolution of σ t ≤ 150 ps ensures high-resolution capabilities. In conjunction with calorimetric properties, a multi-neutron reconstruction efficiency of 50% to 70% for four-neutron events will be achieved, depending on both the emission scenario and the boundary conditions allowed for the reconstruction method. We present in this paper the final design of the detector as well as results from test measurements and simulations on which this design is based. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A new type of spallation experiments has been carried out at GSI, Darmstadt (Germany) in order to understand the spallation mechanism in greater details. These experiments use the inverse-kinematics technique where the ion beam is directed onto a liquid Hydrogen target, allowing the detection of heavy spallation residues in coincidence with low center-of-mass energy light particles. The setup is based on A Large Acceptance DIpole magNet (ALADIN) coupled with a multitrack Time Projection Chamber (TPC), a hodoscope and a neutron detector. First, data on at 1AGeV were taken in February 2004. In the on-going analysis, isotopic cross-sections have been determined and compared to data taken at the FRagment Separator in GSI. Mean values and width of residue velocity distributions have also been obtained as well as Helium production cross-section. First, coincidence data are being analyzed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]