Speaker
Description
Precise nuclear mass data is fundamental to the study of nuclear structure and provides important inputs for nucleosynthesis calculations. Low production yields and short half-lives of increasingly exotic nuclei have propelled the development of the multi-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrograph (MRTOF-MS) to become a leading method for high precision mass measurement. By reflecting low energy ions several hundred times between a pair of electrostatic mirrors, the MRTOF-MS produces an extremely long effective travel path. The MRTOF-MS is able to achieve a mass resolving power of m/Δm = 10^6 with flight times in the range of milliseconds [1], which makes it an attractive candidate for measurements of short-lived nuclei and their isomers. Indeed, the MRTOF-MS has been used as isobar separators and mass spectrometers [2–4] with many more being constructed at accelerator facilities. The stable high-voltage operation of the MRTOF-MS has been a crucial factor in its success. Currently, one of the many challenges of the MRTOF-MS is the voltage instability introduced by high frequency switching of electrodes during trapping and releasing of ions. This leads to undesirable mass dependent effects, limiting the operational range of the MRTOF-MS.
In this contribution, I will give a short overview of some developments of the MRTOF-MS at RIKEN to improve mass resolving power and operational stability, as well as a brief look at further plans for improvements in the future.
References:
[1] M. Rosenbusch, M. Wada, S. Chen, et al., Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. Accel. Spectrometers Detect. Assoc. Equip. 1047, 167824 (2023).
[2] R. N. Wolf, F. Wienholtz, D. Atanasov, et al., Int. J. Mass Spectrom. 349–350, 123 (2013).
[3] P. Schury, M. Wada, Y. Ito, et al., Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. B Beam Interact. Mater. At. 335, 39 (2014).
[4] M. P. Reiter, S. A. S. Andrés, J. Bergmann, et al., Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. Accel. Spectrometers Detect. Assoc. Equip. 1018, 165823 (2021).
