Isomer triggering via nuclear excitation by electron capture

Abstract

Triggering of long-lived nuclear isomeric states via coupling to the atomic shells in the process of nuclear excitation by electron capture (NEEC) is studied. NEEC occurring in highly-charged ions can excite the isomeric state to a triggering level that subsequently decays to the ground state. We present total cross sections for NEEC isomer triggering considering experimentally confirmed low-lying triggering levels and reaction rates based on realistic experimental parameters in ion storage rings. A comparison with other isomer triggering mechanisms shows that, among these, NEEC is the most efficient.

minor changes - updated to the final version; 4 pages, 1 figure

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