1. Advanced nuclear physics (APHY 376)

2. Course Description
A study of the basic concepts for nuclear physics, including nuclear sizes and isotope shifts, the semi empirical mass formula, the nuclear shell model, cross sections, particle detectors

3. Course Objectives
At the end of the course, students should have developed a number of specific skills and areas of knowledge that further the aims of the course:
To teach a variety of contemporary approaches to Nuclear Physics and introduce the theory underlying these approaches.
To learn some of the most interesting and important Nuclear Physics.

4. Course Items
Theoretical Aspect : (Topics to be Covered)
Chapter 1: Nuclear Mass and isotope shifts
Chapter 2: The Semi Empirical Mass Formula
Chapter 3: The nuclear shell model
Chapter 4: Cross Sections
Chapter 5: Particle Detectors
Chapter 6: Applications of Nuclear Physics

5. Learning Resources
Required Textbook(s) (maximum two).
1- W.S.C. Williams: Nuclear and Particle Physics, Oxford Science Publications
2- W.M. Cottingham & D.A. Greenwood: An Introduction to Nuclear Physics, Cambridge University Press

6. Nuclear sizes and isotope shifts
Lectures 1
Nuclear sizes and isotope shifts

7. 1.2 Why Study Nuclear Physics?
1- Understand origin of different nuclei
Big bang: H, He and Li
Stars: elements up to Fe
Supernova: heavy elements

8. 2- We are all made of stardust
3- Need to know nuclear cross sections to understand nucleosynthesis  experimental nuclear astrophysics is a “hot” topic.

9. 1.2 Energy Applications Nuclear fission Nuclear fusion
No greenhouse gasses but …
Safety and storage of radioactive material.
Nuclear fusion
Fewer safety issues (not a bomb)
Less radioactive material but still some.
Nuclear transmutation of radioactive waste with neutrons.
Turn long lived isotopes into stable or short lived ones
Every physicist should have an informed opinion on these important issues!

10. 1.2 Medical Applications Radiotherapy for cancer Medical Imaging
Kill cancer cells.
Used for 100 years but can be improved by better delivery and dosimetry
Heavy ion beams can give more localised energy deposition.
Medical Imaging
MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) uses nuclear magnetic resonances
X-rays (better detectors  lower doses)
PET (Positron Emission Tomography)
Many others…see Medical & Environmental short option.

11. 1.2 Other Applications Radioactive Dating Element analysis
C14/C12 gives ages for dead plants/animals/people.
Rb/Sr gives age of earth as 4.5 Gyr.
Element analysis
Forensic (e.g. date As in hair).
Biology (e.g. elements in blood cells)
Archaeology (e.g. provenance via isotope ratios).

12. 1.3 Why is Nuclear Physics diff(eren)(icul)t?
We have QCD as an exact theory of strong interactions  just solve the equations …
That’s fine at short distances << size of proton
i.e. at large momentum transfers = collisions with high CM energies >> mproton
 coupling constant is small (asymptotic freedom)
 perturbation theory works
But it fails at large distances = (size of proton)
coupling constant becomes big
 perturbation theory fails
 we don’t know how to solve the equations

13. 1.3 Nuclear Physics (Super) Models
Progress with understanding nuclear physics from QCD=0
 use simple, approximate, phenomenological models
inspired by analogies to other system
Semi Empirical Mass Formula (SEMF)
SEMF = Liquid Drop Model + Fermi Gas Model + phenomenology + QM + EM.
Shell Model: look at quantum states of individual nucleons to understand ground and low lying excited states
spin, parity
magnetic moments (not on syllabus)
deviations from SEMF predictions for binding energy.

14. 1.4 Notation Nuclei are labelled: e.g.
El = chemical symbol of the element
Z = number of protons
N = number of neutrons
A = mass number = N + Z
Excited states labelled by * or m if they are metastable (long lived).

16. 1.5 Units
SI units are fine for macroscopic objects like footballs but are very inconvenient for nuclei and particles  use appropriate units.
Energy: 1 MeV = kinetic energy gained by an electron in being accelerated by 1MV.
1 MeV= e/[C] x106 x 1 v = x M J
Mass: MeV/c2 (or GeV/c2)
1 MeV/c2 = e/[C] x106 x 1 v / c2 = 1.78 x kg
Or use Atomic Mass Unit (AMU or u) defined by:
mass of 12C= 12 u
1 u = x kg = 0.93 GeV/c2
Momentum: MeV/c (or GeV/c)
1 MeV/c = 106 x e/[C] x 1 v / c
Length: fermi 1 fm = m
Cross sections: barn = as big as a barn door (to a particle physicists)
1 barn = m2 = 100 fm2
Note: C = Coulomb
c = speed of light

17. 1.6 Nuclear Masses and Sizes
Absolute values measured with mass spectrometers.
Relative values from reactions and decays.
Nuclear Sizes
Measured with scattering experiments
Isotope shifts in atomic spectra

18. 1.6 Nuclear Mass Measurements
As we have studied in Special Relativity , we can Measure relative masses by energy released in decays or reactions.
X  Y +Z + DE
Mass difference between X and Y+Z is DE/c2.
Absolute masses measured by mass spectrometers (next transparency).
Relation between Mass and Binding energy:
B = [Z MH + N Mn – Matom(A,Z)] c2 or
B’ = [Z Mp + N Mn – Mnucleus(A,Z)]c2
(neglecting atomic binding energy of electrons)

19. position sensitive detector
1.6 Mass Spectrometer
Ion Source (e.g. strong laser takes out electrons)
Velocity selector:
for electric and magnetic forces to be equal and opposite need
Momentum selector, circular orbit satisfies:
Measurement of x gives rcurv
rcurv and v gives M
x=x(rcurv)
position sensitive detector
velocity selector
ion source B E B
momentum
selector

20. Isomers
are compounds with the same molecular formula but different structural formulas Isomers do not necessarily share similar properties

21. Isotopomers
are isomers with isotopic atoms, having the same number of each isotope of each element but differing in their positions. For example, CH3CHDCH3 and CH3CH2CH2D are are examples of isotopic stereoisomers of ethanol and of propene, respectively

22. 1.6 Isotope Shifts
Isotope shifts are the small changes in chemical shift observed between isotopomers of a molecule. They are useful for structural and bonding studies as well as spectral assignment. The most commonly studied substitution is that of proton (1H) with deuterium (2D) although a wide range of substitutions may be studied.

23. Factors affecting the magnitude of isotope shifts are the fractional change in mass of the atom (greatest for hydrogen), the chemical shift range and the distance or number of bonds between the exchanged and observed nuclei.

24. There are two classes of isotope shifts:
Primary – the change in chemical shift of an atom when its isotope is changed, for example, the 1H chemical shift versus the 2D chemical shift.
Secondary – the change in chemical shift of an atom when the isotope of one of the neighboring atoms is changed, for example, the chemical shift difference between CH3OH and CH3OD.

25. 1.6 Isotope Shifts Types of isotope shifts in increasing shift order:
Isotope shift for optical spectra
Isotope shift for X-ray spectra (bigger effect then optical because electrons closer to nucleus)
Isotope shift for X-ray spectra for muonic atoms. Effect greatly enhanced because mm~ 207
All data consistent with R=R0 A1/3 using R0=1.25fm.

26. 1.6 Isotope Shift in Optical Spectra
Two lines for odd and even A!
See SEMF pairing term later
A2/3
DE (meV) 40
21 meV

27. 1.6 Isotope Shift in X-Ray Spectra
0.5
DE (eV)
A2/3

28. 1.6 Isotope Shift in muonic atoms
58Fe
56Fe
54Fe
Energy (keV)
2keV

29. 1.6 Isotope Shift Conclusions
All types of isotopes shifts show ~A2/3 as expected for an R2nucl dependence
This holds for all types of nuclei
When fitting the slopes we find the same R0 in Rnucl=R0*A1/3
This tells us that the nuclear density is a universal constant