119249498
Particle-particle random-phase approximation applied to beryllium isotopes
This paper is dedicated to the study of even-even {sup 8-14}Be isotopes, which uses the particle-particle random-phase approximation that accounts for two-body correlations in the core nucleus. A better description of energies and two-particle amplitudes is obtained in comparison with models that assume a neutron closed-shell (or subshell) core. A Woods-Saxon potential corrected by a phenomenological particle-vibration coupling term has been used for the neutron-core interaction and the D1S Gogny force for the neutron-neutron interaction. Calculated ground-state properties as well as excited-state ones are discussed and are compared to experimental data. In particular, results suggest the same 2s{sub 1/2}-1p{sub 1/2} shell inversion in {sup 13}Be as in {sup 11}Be.
118397633
Low-energy dipole excitations in neon isotopes and N=16 isotones within the quasiparticle random-phase approximation and the Gogny force
Low-energy dipole excitations in neon isotopes and N=16 isotones are calculated with a fully consistent axially-symmetric-deformed quasiparticle random phase approximation (QRPA) approach based on Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov (HFB) states. The same Gogny D1S effective force has been used both in HFB and QRPA calculations. The microscopical structure of these low-lying resonances, as well as the behavior of proton and neutron transition densities, are investigated in order to determine the isoscalar or isovector nature of the excitations. It is found that the N=16 isotones {sup 24}O, {sup 26}Ne, {sup 28}Mg, and {sup 30}Si are characterized by a similar behavior. The occupation of the 2s{sub 1/2} neutron orbit turns out to be crucial, leading to nontrivial transition densities and to small but finite collectivity. Some low-lying dipole excitations of {sup 28}Ne and {sup 30}Ne, characterized by transitions involving the {nu}1d{sub 3/2} state, present a more collective behavior and isoscalar transition densities. A collective proton low-lying excitation is identified in the {sup 18}Ne nucleus.
121772448
Challenging nuclear structure models through a microscopic description of proton inelastic scattering off 208Pb
A fully microscopic calculation of inelastic proton scattering off {sup 208}Pb is presented, and compared to experimental scattering data for incident proton energies between 65 and 201 MeV. By constructing the nucleon-nucleus interaction through the folding of nuclear structure information with a reliable nucleon-nucleon effective interaction that has no adjusted parameter, a consistent framework is built, for probing the influence of different descriptions of nuclear structure on nucleon inelastic scattering predictions. The absence of phenomenological normalization in this framework guarantees a unique and unambiguous interpretation of our calculations in terms of quality of the underlying nuclear structure description: a feature that had been reserved, until recently, to the electron probe. This tool is used to investigate the effect of long range correlations embedded in excited states, on calculated inelastic observables, demonstrating the sensitivity of nucleon scattering predictions to details of the nuclear structure.
121877783
Production of metallic ions with an ECRIS at GANIL
A summary of recent and future developments in metallic ion production with an electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) at GANIL is presented. Multicharged metallic ions are routinely produced with an ECRIS (ECR4 14 GHz) and accelerated for nuclear and atomic physics experiments. We present the various methods which have been used to generate these multicharged metallic ions. The accelerator requires stable beams for periods of weeks. The results obtained recently by direct ion plasma sputtering of Ni, Nb, and U samples are remarkable and stable beams from these metals have been delivered continuously for weeks. A pulsed EXCIMER laser, injecting a beam axially through the extraction hole of the ECRIS, has been tested for ablation on a rotating uranium target for uranium beam production. The metal ions from volatile compounds technique using volatile compounds has been also tested with ferrocene [Fe(C5H5)2] to produce multicharged Fe ions. We plan to install a third high voltage platform using an EC...
117160842
Microscopic description of elastic and inelastic proton scattering from 208pb
Information on the equation of state (EOS) of neutron matter may be gained from studies of 208Pb. Descriptions of 208Pb require credible models of structure, taking particular note also of the spectrum. Such may be tested by analyses of scattering data. Herein, we report on such analyses using an RPA model for 208Pb in a folding model of the scattering. No a posteriori adjustment of parameters are needed to obtain excellent agreement with data. 
From those analyses, the skin thickness of 208Pb is constrained to lie in the range 0.13-0.17 fm.
120568906
QRPA CALCULATIONS FOR SPHERICAL AND DEFORMED NUCLEI WITH THE GOGNY FORCE
Fully consistent axially-symmetric-deformed Quasi-particle Random Phase Approximation (QRPA) calculations have been performed with the D1S Gogny force. Impact of the deformation in giant multipole resonances is discussed. QRPA and 5 Dimensional Collective Hamiltonian results are compared for low lying 2+ states in N = 16 isotones and Ni isotopes. Multipole resonances are also obtained for the heavy nucleus 238U.
119596704
Holomorphic Lorentzian simplicity constraints
We develop a Hamiltonian representation of the sl(2,C) algebra on a phase space consisting of N copies of twistors, or bi-spinors. We identify a complete set of global invariants, and show that they generate a closed algebra including gl(N,C) as a subalgebra. Then, we define the linear and quadratic simplicity constraints which reduce the spinor variables to (framed) 3d space-like polyhedra embedded in Minkowski spacetime. Finally, we introduce a new version of the simplicity constraints which (i) are holomorphic and (ii) Poisson-commute with each other, and show their equivalence to the linear and quadratic constraints.
118728019
Spin Foam Models for Quantum Gravity and semi-classical limit
The spinfoam framework is a proposal for a regularized path integral for quantum gravity. Spinfoams define quantum space-time structures describing the evolution in time of the spin network states for quantum geometry derived from Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG). The construction of this covariant approach is based on the formulation of General Relativity as a topological theory plus the so-called simplicity constraints which introduce local degrees of freedom. The simplicity constraints are essential in turning the non-physical topological theory into 4d gravity. In this PhD manuscript, an original way to impose the simplicity constraints in 4d Euclidean gravity using harmonic oscillators is proposed and new coherent states, solutions of the constraints, are given. Moreover, a consistent spinfoam model for quantum gravity has to be connected to LQG and must have the right semi-classical limit. An explicit map between the spin network states of LQG and the boundary states of spinfoam models is given connecting the canonical and the covariant approaches. Finally, new techniques to compute semiclassical asymptotic expressions for the transition amplitudes of 3d quantum gravity and to extract semi-classical information from a spinfoam model are introduced. Explicit computations based on approximation methods and on the use of recurrence relations on spinfoam amplitudes have been performed. The results are relevant to derive quantum corrections to the dynamics of the gravitational field.
119459711
Revisiting the simplicity constraints and coherent intertwiners
In the context of loop quantum gravity and spinfoam models, the simplicity constraints are essential in that they allow one to write general relativity as a constrained topological BF theory. In this work, we apply the recently developed U(N) framework for SU(2) intertwiners to the issue of imposing the simplicity constraints to spin network states. More particularly, we focus on solving on individual intertwiners in the 4D Euclidean theory. We review the standard way of solving the simplicity constraints using coherent intertwiners and we explain how these fit within the U(N) framework. Then we show how these constraints can be written as a closed algebra and we propose a set of U(N) coherent states that solves all the simplicity constraints weakly for an arbitrary Immirzi parameter.
118825085
Pushing Further the Asymptotics of the 6j-symbol
In the context of spin-foam models for quantum gravity, we investigate the asymptotical behavior of the (6j)-symbol at next-to-leading order. This gives the first quantum gravity correction to the (3d) Regge action. We compute it analytically and check our results against numerical calculations. The (6j)-symbol is the building block of the Ponzano-Regge amplitudes for 3d quantum gravity, and the present analysis is directly relevant to deriving the quantum corrections to gravitational correlations in the spin-foam formalism.
119208355
Deformed phase space for 3d loop gravity and hyperbolic discrete geometries
We revisit the loop gravity space phase for 3D Riemannian gravity by algebraically constructing the phase space $T^*\mathrm{SU}(2)\sim\mathrm{ISO}(3)$ as the Heisenberg double of the Lie group $\mathrm{SO}(3)$ provided with the trivial cocyle. Tackling the issue of accounting for a non-vanishing cosmological constraint $\Lambda \ne 0$ in the canonical framework of 3D loop quantum gravity, $\mathrm{SL}(2,\mathbb{C})$ viewed as the Heisenberg double of $\mathrm{SU}(2)$ provided with a non-trivial cocyle is introduced as a phase space. It is a deformation of the flat phase space $\mathrm{ISO}(3)$ and reproduces the latter in a suitable limit. The $\mathrm{SL}(2,\mathbb{C})$ phase space is then used to build a new, deformed LQG phase space associated to graphs. It can be equipped with a set of Gauss constraints and flatness constraints, which form a first class system and Poisson-generate local 3D rotations and deformed translations. We provide a geometrical interpretation for this lattice phase space with constraints in terms of consistently glued hyperbolic triangles, i.e. hyperbolic discrete geometries, thus validating our construction as accounting for a constant curvature $\Lambda<0$. Finally, using ribbon diagrams, we show that our new model is topological.