Darmstadt 2008 – scientific programme
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A: Fachverband Atomphysik
A 6: Interaction of matter with ions
A 6.3: Talk
Tuesday, March 11, 2008, 09:00–09:15, 3D
Development of a Drift Time Spectrometer for Heavy Element Research — •Mustapha Laatiaoui1, Michael Sewtz1, Dieter Habs1, Hartmut Backe2, Werner Lauth2, and Peter Kunz2 — 1Department für Physik, LMU München, Am Coulombwall 1, D-85748 Garching, Germany — 2Institut für Kernphysik, Universität Mainz, D-55099 Mainz,Germany
Atomic and chemical properties of the heaviest elements are strongly influenced by relativistic effects. Theoretical calculations of ionic radii yield relativistic contractions of the valence orbitals, which show individual trends for different electronic configurations; an effect that may be exploited for element identification of superheavy ions.
Ion mobility spectrometry presents the most direct method to probe these calculations. This technique is well established for stable elements to determine the ionic mobility K by the drift time of ions along electric field lines inside a noble gas filled buffer gas cell. From collision cross sections, which are inverse proportional to K, ionic radii can be inferred.
Due to the low production rates and short half-lifes of the heaviest elements, ultra-sensitive experimental methods are needed. A suitable experimental setup is beeing developed, which will permit the determination of the ion mobility of short-lived nuclei with a precision of δ K/K <10−2. A status report of this project will be given. This work is supported by the BMBF(06ML236I).