Characterization of Zr-V-Fe Non-Evaporable Getter Strips for use in a Miniature Penning Trap*

The Low Energy Beam and Ion Trap (LEBIT) group at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory (NSCL) performs high-precision mass measurements using a Penning trap. The current method involves measuring reference ions of known mass in order to calibrate the magnetic field. Because the reference measurements require us to stop the measurement of a rare isotope, we will optimize the use of beam time by installing a magnetometer to directly measure the magnetic field while conducting a rare isotope measurement. A miniature Penning trap (MiniTrap) will be mounted adjacent to the measurement trap to serve as a magnetometer. To reach the desired precision, the MiniTrap must be operated in very low pressures. We investigate using the SAES St707 (Zr-V-Fe) non-evaporable getter to pump out the MiniTrap to achieve an ultra-high vacuum. Excess hydrogen will be ionized into $H_2^+$ and serve as the reference mass. We report a pumping speed for the activated getter material, partial pressures for the background gases after different pumping intervals, and discuss further work with the MiniTrap.