Using a segmented PMT as an implantation detector for decay studies*

Nuclear decay experiments at fragmentation facilities need a versatile implantation detector for measuring the position and energy of implantation events and their corresponding decay events.  Conventional silicon detectors do not have a sufficient time resolution for measuring fast decays or neutron Time-of-Flight spectroscopy. A planned experiment to measure the super-allowed alpha decay chain of ¹⁰⁸Xe to doubly-magic ¹⁰⁰Sn would require a detector to be very fast, as the half-life of ¹⁰⁴Te has previously been measured to have an upper limit of 20 ns [1]. Using a segmented Yttrium Orthosilicate (YSO) scintillator coupled to a multi-anode PMT [2] proves to be a good implant detector, with a fast scintillation response which can be used to measure these fast alpha half-lives, while a high light yield allows for precise measurements of decays for other fragmentation experiments, such as studying proton emission or the beta-delayed neutron spectroscopy. The YSO detector can be paired with LaBr₃ gamma detectors for measuring excited states.  Development of a segmented YSO detector designed for fragmentation experiments will be presented.

 

[1] K. Auranen et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 18251 (2018)

[2] R. Yokoyama et al., Nucl. Instrum. and Methods A 937, 93-97 (2019)