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Abstract: The laser ion source at the IGISOL facility, Jyväskylä, has been used to study the effects of the passage of a primary beam through an ion guide via the dynamic time profiles of yttrium and related molecular compounds. The accessibility of a neutral fraction for laser ionization is shown to be restricted to the nozzle region in the presence of a weak plasma. The survival of this neutral fraction cannot be explained by recombination of the buffer gas alone and perhaps indicates a suppression of the transport of ions due to a plasma-generated electric field. The concept of a competition between the processes that create and destroy the ion of interest is used to explain the different trends in the ratio of yttrium to yttrium oxide following the extraction of a stopped primary beam of 89Y21+ in both helium and argon buffer gases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The laser ion source project at the IGISOL facility, Jyväskylä, has motivated the development and construction of an rf sextupole ion beam guide (SPIG) to replace the original skimmer electrode. The SPIG has been tested both off-line and on-line in proton-induced fission, light-ion and heavy-ion induced fusion–evaporation reactions and, in each case, has been directly compared to the skimmer system. For both fission and light-ion induced fusion, the SPIG has improved the mass-separated ion yields by a factor of typically 4–8. Correspondingly, the transmission efficiency of both systems has been studied in simulations with and without space charge effects. The transport capacity of the SPIG has been experimentally determined to be ∼1012 ionss−1 before space charge effects start to take effect. A direct comparison with the simulation has been made using data obtained via light-ion fusion evaporation. Both experiment and simulation show an encouraging agreement as a function of current extracted from the ion guide. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The technique of using noble gases to cool energetic beams offers fast extraction times, very little sensitivity to chemical properties of the ions and very low-energy spreads. A variant of this method is based on the selective laser ionization of radioactive species after they have been thermalized in gas as neutral atoms. The laser ion source in Jyväskylä is used to highlight the importance of buffer gas purity using yttrium, a particularly chemically reactive element. The time distribution profiles obtained on-line illustrate the competing factors that create and destroy the ion of interest during evacuation from the ion guide. A review of the extraction efficiencies of gas catchers of different volumes, buffer gases, projectile energies and electric fields all show a common decrease as a function of ionization-rate density. The reasons for this decline and possible solutions to tolerate higher primary beam intensities are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A laser ion source is under development at the IGISOL facility, Jyväskylä, in order to address deficiencies in the ion guide technique. The key elements of interest are those of a refractory nature, whose isotopes and isomers are widely studied using both laser spectroscopic and high precision mass measurement techniques. Yttrium has been the first element of choice for the new laser ion source. In this work, we present a new coupled dye–Ti:Sapphire laser scheme and give a detailed discussion of the results obtained from laser ionization of yttrium atoms produced in an ion guide via resistive heating of a filament. The importance of not only gas purity, but indeed the baseline vacuum pressure in the environment outside the ion guide is discussed in light of the fast gas phase chemistry seen in the yttrium system. A single laser shot model is introduced and is compared to the experimental data in order to extract the level of impurities within the gas cell. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A low-energy branch is under development for the MARA vacuum-mode recoil separator at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyväskylä. This development will allow for the study of proton-rich nuclei through laser ionisation spectroscopy and mass measurements. After stopping and extraction from a buffer gas cell, the ions of interest will be accelerated and transported to dedicated experimental setups by an ion transport system consisting of several focusing, accelerating and mass-separating elements. This article presents the current design and simulations for the ion transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the IGISOL-4 facility, neutron-rich, medium mass nuclei have usually been produced via charged particle-induced fission of natural uranium and thorium. Neutron-induced fission is expected to have a higher production cross section of the most neutron-rich species. Development of a neutron source along with a new ion guide continues to be one of the major goals since the commissioning of IGISOL-4. Neutron intensities at different angles from a beryllium neutron source have been measured in an on-line experiment with a 30 MeV proton beam. Recently, the new ion guide coupled to the neutron source has been tested as well. Details of the neutron source and ion guide design together with preliminary results from the first neutron-induced fission experiment at IGISOL-4 are presented in this report. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The front end of the Jyväskylä IGISOL facility was upgraded in 2003 by increasing its pumping capacity and by improving the radiation shielding. In late 2005, the skimmer electrode of the mass separator was replaced by a sextupole ion guide, which improved the mass separator efficiency up to an order of magnitude. The current design of the facility is described. The updated yield data, achieved with and without the additional JYFLTRAP purification, using both fusion evaporation reactions and particle induced fission is presented to give an overview of the capability of the facility. These data have been determined either by radioactivity measurements or by direct ion counting after the Penning trap system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]