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The Nab experiment will measure the correlation a between the momenta of the beta particle and antineutrino in neutron decay as well as the Fierz term b which distorts the beta spectrum.

At TRIUMF's ion trap for atomic and nuclear science (TITAN) a new experimental technique is being developed to measure electron-capture branching ratios of intermediate nuclei in double-β decays. The key feature of this novel technique is the use of an open access Penning trap. Radioactive ions are stored inside the trap while their decays are observed. X-rays following an electron capture are detected by x-ray detectors radially installed around the trap. Electrons originating from β-decays are guided out of the trap by the Penning trap's strong magnetic field where they are then detected by a Si-detector. Detailed simulations have been performed to determine the size and characterize the efficiency of this detector. During a beam time with radioactive 107In this β-detector has been used and for the first time an electron capture branching ratio has been determined with this novel technique of in-trap decay spectroscopy.

Observations from gamma ray telescopes indicate that most of the galactic 26Al originates in massive stars. Several sites have been discussed for its production, including proton burning in the winds of very massive stars, and the later, explosive burning stages of these stars. Observations from the RHESSI and INTEGRAL missions currently seem to point to the latter scenario. In the advanced burning stages of massive stars the presence of neutrons becomes an important factor in nuclear reaction networks, so in addition to the 26Al(p,γ)27Si reaction the neutron capture reactions 26Al(n,p)26Mg and 26Al(n,α)23Na can lead to the destruction of 26Al, and thus alter the observed 26Al abundance. NEURAL is a detector design to measure the excitation functions of these reactions over a wide range of energies. 26Al targets implanted at TRIUMF will be exposed to a pulsed neutron beam at the neutron time-of-flight facility at LANSCE (Los Alamos Neutron Science CEnter). NEURAL is designed to detect all charged reaction products, combining a time projection chamber for the heavy ions, and Si detectors for the light particles mounted around the target. A first prototype has been built and partially tested at TRIUMF and LANSCE in December 2009.

Unlike the proton, whose lifetime is longer than the age of the universe, a free neutron decays with a lifetime of about 15 minutes. Measuring the exact lifetime of neutrons is surprisingly tricky; putting them in a container and monitoring their decay can lead to errors because some neutrons will be lost owing to interactions with the container walls. To overcome this problem, Pattie et al. measured the lifetime in a trap where ultracold polarized neutrons were levitated by magnetic fields, precluding interactions with the trap walls (see the Perspective by Mumm). This more precise determination of the neutron lifetime will aid our understanding of how the first nuclei formed after the Big Bang. Science , this issue p. 627 ; see also p. 605 Ultracold polarized neutrons are levitated in a trap to measure their lifetime with reduced systematic uncertainty. The precise value of the mean neutron lifetime, τ n , plays an important role in nuclear and particle physics and cosmology. It is used to predict the ratio of protons to helium atoms in the primordial universe and to search for physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. We eliminated loss mechanisms present in previous trap experiments by levitating polarized ultracold neutrons above the surface of an asymmetric storage trap using a repulsive magnetic field gradient so that the stored neutrons do not interact with material trap walls. As a result of this approach and the use of an in situ neutron detector, the lifetime reported here [877.7 ± 0.7 (stat) +0.4/–0.2 (sys) seconds] does not require corrections larger than the quoted uncertainties.

Here, the precise value of the mean neutron lifetime, τn, plays an important role in nuclear and particle physics and cosmology. It is used to predict the ratio of protons to helium atoms in the primordial universe and to search for physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. We eliminated loss mechanisms present in previous trap experiments by levitating polarized ultracold neutrons above the surface of an asymmetric storage trap using a repulsive magnetic field gradient so that the stored neutrons do not interact with material trap walls. As a result of this approach and the use of an in situ neutron detector, the lifetime reported here [877.7 ± 0.7 (stat) +0.4/–0.2 (sys) seconds] does not require corrections larger than the quoted uncertainties.

Neutron beta decay is one of the most fundamental processes in nuclear physics and provides sensitive means to uncover the details of the weak interaction. Neutron beta decay can evaluate the ratio of axial-vector to vector coupling constants in the standard model, \\(\\lambda = g_A / g_V\\), through multiple decay correlations. The Nab experiment will carry out measurements of the electron-neutrino correlation parameter \\(a\\) with a precision of \\(\\delta a / a = 10^{-3}\\) and the Fierz interference term \\(b\\) to \\(\\delta b = 3\\times10^{-3}\\) in unpolarized free neutron beta decay. These results, along with a more precise measurement of the neutron lifetime, aim to deliver an independent determination of the ratio \\(\\lambda\\) with a precision of \\(\\delta \\lambda / \\lambda = 0.03\\%\\) that will allow an evaluation of \\(V_{ud}\\) and sensitively test CKM unitarity, independent of nuclear models. Nab utilizes a novel, long asymmetric spectrometer that guides the decay electron and proton to two large area silicon detectors in order to precisely determine the electron energy and an estimation of the proton momentum from the proton time of flight. The Nab spectrometer is being commissioned at the Fundamental Neutron Physics Beamline at the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Lab. We present an overview of the Nab experiment and recent updates on the spectrometer, analysis, and systematic effects.

The Nab experiment will measure the ratio of the weak axial-vector and vector coupling constants \\(\\lambda=g_A/g_V\\) with precision \\(\\delta\\lambda/\\lambda\\sim3\\times10^{-4}\\) and search for a Fierz term \\(b_F\\) at a level \\(\\Delta b_F<10^{-3}\\). The Nab detection system uses thick, large area, segmented silicon detectors to very precisely determine the decay proton's time of flight and the decay electron's energy in coincidence and reconstruct the correlation between the antineutrino and electron momenta. Excellent understanding of systematic effects affecting timing and energy reconstruction using this detection system are required. To explore these effects, a series of ex situ studies have been undertaken, including a search for a Fierz term at a less sensitive level of \\(\\Delta b_F<10^{-2}\\) in the beta decay of \\(^{45}\\)Ca using the UCNA spectrometer.

In the UCN{\\tau} experiment, ultracold neutrons (UCN) are confined by magnetic fields and the Earth's gravitational field. Field-trapping mitigates the problem of UCN loss on material surfaces, which caused the largest correction in prior neutron experiments using material bottles. However, the neutron dynamics in field traps differ qualitatively from those in material bottles. In the latter case, neutrons bounce off material surfaces with significant diffusivity and the population quickly reaches a static spatial distribution with a density gradient induced by the gravitational potential. In contrast, the field-confined UCN -- whose dynamics can be described by Hamiltonian mechanics -- do not exhibit the stochastic behaviors typical of an ideal gas model as observed in material bottles. In this report, we will describe our efforts to simulate UCN trapping in the UCN{\\tau} magneto-gravitational trap. We compare the simulation output to the experimental results to determine the parameters of the neutron detector and the input neutron distribution. The tuned model is then used to understand the phase space evolution of neutrons observed in the UCN{\\tau} experiment. We will discuss the implications of chaotic dynamics on controlling the systematic effects, such as spectral cleaning and microphonic heating, for a successful UCN lifetime experiment to reach a 0.01% level of precision.

A new boron-coated CCD camera is described for direct detection of ultracold neutrons (UCN) through the capture reactions \\(^{10}\\)B (n,\\(\\alpha\\)0\\(\\gamma\\))\\(^7\\)Li (6%) and \\(^{10}\\)B(n,\\(\\alpha\\)1\\(\\gamma\\))\\(^7\\)Li (94%). The experiments, which extend earlier works using a boron-coated ZnS:Ag scintillator, are based on direct detections of the neutron-capture byproducts in silicon. The high position resolution, energy resolution and particle ID performance of a scientific CCD allows for observation and identification of all the byproducts \\(\\alpha\\), \\(^7\\)Li and \\(\\gamma\\) (electron recoils). A signal-to-noise improvement on the order of 10\\(^4\\) over the indirect method has been achieved. Sub-pixel position resolution of a few microns is demonstrated. The technology can also be used to build UCN detectors with an area on the order of 1 m\\(^2\\). The combination of micrometer scale spatial resolution, few electrons ionization thresholds and large area paves the way to new research avenues including quantum physics of UCN and high-resolution neutron imaging and spectroscopy.

The precise value of the mean neutron lifetime, \\(\\tau_n\\), plays an important role in nuclear and particle physics and cosmology. It is a key input for predicting the ratio of protons to helium atoms in the primordial universe and is used to search for new physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. There is a 3.9 standard deviation discrepancy between \\(\\tau_n\\) measured by counting the decay rate of free neutrons in a beam (887.7 \\(\\pm\\) 2.2 s) and by counting surviving ultracold neutrons stored for different storage times in a material trap (878.5\\(\\pm\\)0.8 s). The experiment described here eliminates loss mechanisms present in previous trap experiments by levitating polarized ultracold neutrons above the surface of an asymmetric storage trap using a repulsive magnetic field gradient so that the stored neutrons do not interact with material trap walls and neutrons in quasi-stable orbits rapidly exit the trap. As a result of this approach and the use of a new in situ neutron detector, the lifetime reported here (877.7 \\(\\pm\\) 0.7 (stat) +0.4/-0.2 (sys) s) is the first modern measurement of \\(\\tau_n\\) that does not require corrections larger than the quoted uncertainties.