In recent decades, the accessibility of nuclear physics has been greatly improved due to the advent of modern supercomputers, as well as theoretical developments in effective field theory and ab initio (first--principles) nuclear approaches. As a result, in modern nuclear theory it is possible to perform realistic quantum many--body calculations of nuclear systems, beginning solely from underlying Standard Model symmetries. A fundamental object of interest in nuclear structure are the nuclear densities, which may be abundantly used in calculation of other nuclear observables. Utilizing the ab initio no--core shell model, a rigorous theoretical approach for calculations involving light--nuclei, we study the coordinate space densities of various nuclear systems and discuss the importance of nonlocality and translation invariance in the densities. In particular, this property is investigated at length in the context of scattering theory, in which optical potentials are constructed from the ab initio no--core shell model densities. We explore the impacts of nonlocality and translation invariance in proton and antiproton scattering, and in the latter we review the first fully microscopic optical potential for antiproton--nucleus scattering. In addition, while the full problem is intractable at present, we assess the potential impact of many--nucleon dynamics on scattering observables. We additionally present an analytic computation of the nuclear kinetic density distribution, derived from the nonlocal nuclear densities. While the nuclear problem has become increasingly tractable, the computational barrier is still ever present, with nuclear calculations pushing the frontier of modern supercomputing. Many approaches have been developed to quell the computational demand, e.g. the similarity renormalization group approach. We introduce and discuss another approach, namely the natural orbitals unitary transformation, which has been shown increase the convergence rate of quantum many--body calculations. Lastly, in the past three years there has revitalized interest in reevaluation of particular Standard Model symmetries. Notably, the Cabibbo--Kobayashi--Maskawa quark mixing matrix has been established as a high--precision test of the Standard Model, capable of pointing to novel physics. Recent theoretical advances in corrections needed to evaluate unitarity of the Cabibbo--Kobayashi--Maskawa matrix have indicated a statistical discrepancy with the Standard Model expectation. In light of this development, using the ab initio no--core shell model with continuum, we pursue a high--precision calculation of the isospin symmetry breaking correction, $\delta_C$. This correction is one of two nuclear structure dependent corrections needed to shed light on this discrepancy, and potentially identify physics beyond the Standard Model. / Graduate

In this dissertation, covariant density functional theory has been applied to a variety of nuclear phenomena in the ground and excited states of rotating and non-rotating nuclei. It has been applied for the interpretation of excited superdeformed bands in 154Dy using the effective alignmentmethods. The properties of the predicted hyperdeformed nuclei at high spin in the Z = 40−58 region were investigated and the spins at which such configuration become yrast were defined. The moments of inertia, the role of single-particle energies and necking degree of freedom have also been studied. It also predicted that 107Cd is the best nucleus for its observation. The impact of time-odd mean fields (nuclear magnetism NM) in both non-rotating and rotating frame works, on physical observables has been studied. It is shown that nuclear magnetism always provide additional binding to the binding energies of odd-mass nuclei. Time-odd mean fields affect odd-even mass differences. However, the modifications of the strength of pairing correlations required to compensate for their effects are modest. In contrast, time-odd mean fields have a profound effect on the properties of odd-proton nuclei in the vicinity of the proton drip line. Their presence can modify the half-lives of proton emitters and considerably affect the possibilities of their experimental observation. They also have a profound effect on the dynamic and kinematic moments of inertia, particle number, configuration, and rotational frequency dependencies of their impact on the moments of inertia. The effect of NM on the binding energy and moments of inertia weakly depend on the choice of the RMF parametrization. Fission barriers are studied systematically with the allowence for triaxial deformations, in the actinide and superheavy regions. It is shown that covariant density functional theory is able to describe fission barriers, in actinides, on a level of accuracy comparable with nonrelativistic calculations. Triaxiality in the region of the first saddle plays a crucial role in achieving that. However, in the Z = 112 - 120 superheavy nuclei, the inner fission barriers are not affected by triaxiality. General trends of the evolution of inner fission heights are discussed.

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / Measurements of nuclear level lifetimes are an important aspect of experimental nuclear physics. Such measurements determine transition matrix elements for nuclear structure research and also provide the widths of relevant excited states in nuclei that are of astrophysical interest. In the latter, the measured widths are used to obtain reaction rates in main sequence stars such as the Sun and in binary-star systems where the accretion of material from one star to another provides an opportunity to study extreme stellar environments such as novae and x-ray bursts. This thesis work describes the design and simulation of a new experimental set up at iThemba LABS that will allow for highprecision femtosecond-level lifetime measurements of nuclear states using the Doppler Shift Attenuation Method (DSAM). We use the Solid Edge computer-aided design (CAD) software to design a new scattering chamber with a cooled target ladder specifically for such measurements using inverse-kinematic transfer reactions with ion implanted targets. The light charged ejectiles from the reaction will be detected with a ΔE - E silicon telescope, while Doppler shifted rays will be registered using a high-purity and 100% efficient germanium (HPGe) detector. We also describe preliminary Monte Carlo simulation codes that are being developed in a relativistically invariant framework to optimize the experimental set up and to obtain predicted lineshapes of γ rays from several astrophysically relevant states in nuclei using this experimental set up. / National Research Foundation (NRF)

<p>The odd &ndash / odd Tl nuclei with A &ge / 190 have moderate oblate nuclear deformation and show rotational bands built on different quasiparticle excitations. Several phenomena, not yet fully understood, were observed in these nuclei, such as large signature splitting in the yrast band (built on a &pi / h9/2&otimes / &nu / i13/2 configuration), possible non &ndash / axiality of the nuclear shape, etc. In this work the high &ndash / spin states in 194Tl were studied. The 194Tl nuclei were produced in the 181Ta (18O, 5n) 194Tl reaction at a beam energy of 93 MeV and the &gamma / - rays were detected using the AFRODITE array. The obtained extended level scheme of 194Tl is presented and discussed in this work. CSM (Cranking shell model) and TRS (Total Routhians Surface) models were both applied to interpret the results for band 1. The results were compared with the neighboring isotone 193Hg.</p>

Magister Scientiae - MSc / The aim of nuclear structure physics is to study the interplay between singleparticle and collective degrees of freedom in nuclei and to explain how nuclei get excited and decay under di erent external conditions, such as strong electric and magnetic elds. If nuclei absorb a large amount of energy and angular momentum, like in a scattering reaction when you bombard a target that is in the ground state with a projectile at high bombarding energies, the energy from the projectile gets transfered to the target and vice versa, hence both projectile and target may get excited. During the de-excitation process nuclei may release the energy in a form of electromagnetic radiation (gamma rays) which carries angular momentum. The atomic nucleus is a many-body system, whose structure is de ned in terms of interactions between protons and neutrons. In nature there are only around 300 stable isotopes [1]. They are all in their ground states (although some are in a low-energy excited isomeric state with a long lifetime). To study excited states in these nuclei one needs to provide energy to the system. In addition, there are some 3000 unstable nuclei, most of which do not exist in nature. Many have been produced and studied in research laboratories, and there could be more than 3000 other unstable nuclei that can in principle exist in astrophysical environments, but have not yet been synthesized on Earth [1].

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This thesis describes research work undertaken to study neutron pairing correlations in 136Ba via the 138Ba(p, t) pair transfer reaction and to perform high-precision spectroscopy of low-lying states in 136Cs using the 138Ba(d, ) reaction. The aim of this project was to provide useful spectroscopic information relevant for matrix element calculations of 136Xe neutrinoless double beta decay. This work is relevant because neutrinoless double beta decays are standard-model-forbidden lepton number violating processes, which if observed, would establish the Majorana nature of the neutrinos and also determine the absolute mass scale of the light Majorana neutrinos. Our experiments show a signi cant fragmentation of the two-neutron transfer (p, t) strength to excited 0+ states in 136Ba, which could signi cantly affect future matrix element calculations. Additionally we obtain information on 65 new states in 136Cs observed in this work. It is anticipated that these new information will play a vital role in improving the precision of calculated matrix elements for 136Xe double beta decays.

Neste trabalho estudamos a dependência do calibre nos cálculos modelo do fator de forma transverso elétrico para núcleos complexos. Foram consideradas as diferentes prescrições que procuram levar parcialmente em consideração os efeitos da corrente de dois corpos, no cálculo do fator de forma transverso elétrico, através dos vínculos impostos pela equação da continuidade. Quando os estados nucleares satisfazem a equação de Schrödinger e a corrente a equação da continuidade as prescrições coincidem. Entretanto, em geral, essas condições não são satisfeitas, surgindo assim as diferenças entre elas, que pode ser interpretada como uma dependência do calibre no cálculo do fator de forma transverso elétrico, Nosso objetivo neste trabalho é mostrar a importância, em núcleos complexos) da dependência do calibre oriunda da violação da equação de Schrödinger pelas funções de onda modelo. Nós fazemos uma análise para verificar sua origem e, para demonstrar sua importância quantitativa, comparamos cálculos do fator de forma na TDA e na RPA, para estados coletivos de paridade negativa no 16 ANTPOT O e 40 ANTPOT Ca. Esta comparação mostra uma considerável diminuição da dependência do calibre quando passamos da TDA para RPA. / In this work we study the gauge dependence of mode) calculations of transverse electric form factors in complex nuclei. We consider the different prescriptions that try to take partially into account the effects of the two-body current, in the calculation of the transverse electric form factor, through the continuity equation constraints. When the nuclear states obey the Schrodinger equation and the current density the continuity equation, the prescriptions coincide. However, in general, these two conditions are not satisfied and therefore they differ which can be seen as a gauge dependence in the calculation of the transverse electric form factor. Our aim is to show the importance in complex nuclei, of the gauge dependence that comes from the violation of the Schrödinger equation by the model wave functions. We perform an analysis to identify its origin and, to give evidences of its quantitative importance, we compare TDA and RPA calculations of transverse electric form factors for collective states of negative parity in 160 and 46Ca. This comparison shows that the gauge dependence diminishes considerably in RPA.

As estruturas dos núcleos de ANTPOT. 105 Rhe de ANTPOT 108.Pd foram estudadas usando a reação ANTPOT. 100 Mo(ANTPOT. 11 Bxalfaypzn) na energia incidente de 43 MeV. Foram realizadas as medidas de coincidências gama-gama, gama-gama- multiplicidade de partículas carregadas e das correlações angulares utilizando o espectrômetro gama formado por 4 detectores HPGe e o sistema ancilar de detectores de partículas carregadas. No núcleo de ANTPOT. 105 Rh foi observada pela primeira vez a banda gama, indicando a existência de trixialidade em baixo spin, e uma nova estrutura baseada no orbital intruso (431)1/2 POT. +. Duas estruturas formadas por uma quasi-próton, pig IND. 9/2 e pi[301]1/2 POT. -, foram estendidas, e em ambos casos foram observadas as duas signatures. Quatro bandas de dipolo magnético foram observadas em alto spin, sendo três delas de paridade negativa e com características similares: muito regulares, alinhamento quase constante e valores de B(M1)/B(E2) relativamente grandes. Duas destas bandas são aproximadamente degeneradas em energia de excitação, e podem ser consideradas como parceiras quirais com uma configuração pig IND. 9/2 vh IND. 11/2 v(g IND. 7/2, d IND. 5/2). No núcleo de ANTPOT. 108 Pd foram observadas pela primeira vez as duas signatures da banda de configuração negativa vh IND. 11/2 v(g IND. 7/2, d IND. 5/2), e uma banda com intensidade relativa baixa, à qual pode ser atribuída uma configuração de paridade positiva (vh IND. 11/2) POT. 2. A interpretação dos resultados experimentais foi feita no contexto de Cranked Shell Model e de Total Routhian Surfaces. / The structures of the 105Rh and 108Pd nuclei have been studied by the in-beam heavy-ion fusion-evaporation reaction 100Mo (11B, xaypzn) at 43 MeV incident energy. -, charged particle -- coincidences and angular correlation were measured using the spectrometer formed by four HPGe detectors and the charge-particle ancillary detector system. In 105Rh, a -vibration band was observed for the first time indicating the existence of triaxiality at low spin. A new structure based on the intruder [431]1/2+ próton orbital was identified. The structures based on one quase-proton, g9/2 and [301]1/2-, were extended, showing the two signatures partners. Four magnetic dipole bands have also been observed at high spin, three of which have negative parity and have similar characteristics: they are very regular, present nearly Constant alignments, and large values of B (M1)/B(E2) ratios. Two of them are nearly degenerate in excitation energy and could be chiral partners with , g9/2 x h 11/2 x (9 7/2 , d 5/2) configuration. Also, in 108Pd the both signatures partners of h 11/2 x (9 7/2 , d 5/2) configuration and one structure for the first time. Experimental results were interpreted within the framework of Cranked Shell Model and Total Routhian Surfaces.

Parâmetros de deformação nuclear de massa, inéditos, e de carga, associados aos primeiros estados 2 POT.+ dos isótopos ANTPOT.100 Ru, ANTPOT.102 Ru e ANTPOT.104 Ru, foram extraídos simultaneamente a partir da análise de espalhamentos inelásticos de dêuterons e partículas alfa. Foram obtidas distribuições angulares, com dêuterons incidentes de 13,2 MeV, detalhando a região de máxima interferência nuclear-coulombiana, utilizando-se emulsões nucleares no plano focal de um espectrógrafo magnético tipo Enge. As medidas de espalhamento elástico e inelástico de partículas alfa forma realizadas, com a utilização de detetores de barreira de superfície, compreendendo funções de excitação, em = 172,8 POT. 0, entre 9 MeV e 17 MeV (incluindo regiões de excitação coulombiana pura e de interferência nuclear-coulombiana), e também distribuições angulares a 22 MeV para o ANTPOT.100 Ru. Ajustes das distribuições angulares e funções de excitação dos espalhamentos inelásticos, com previsões DWBA calculadas com fator de forma coletivo, permitiram a extração dos parâmetros de deformação, através de metodologia criticamente estabelecida no presente trabalho. A informação original de estrutura nuclear obtida refere-se a um aumento da deformação nuclear de massa com acréscimo do número de nêutrons, que entretanto, definitivamente não acompanha o aumento da deformação de carga. A coerência entre os resultados com os dois projéteis e a ótima concordância com os dados de excitação coulombiana da literatura convalidam o método de medida e de análise. / Nuclear deformation parameters characterizing separately the mass and the charge contributions to the excitation of the first 2 POT.+ states of ANTPOT.100 Ru, ANTPOT.102 Ru and ANTPOT.104 Ru were simultaneously extracted in the analysis of inelastic scattering of both deuterons and alpha-particles. Angular distributions detailing the region of maximal coulomb-nuclear interference were recorded for deuterons of 13.2 MeV incident energy, with nuclear emulsions at the focal plane of an Enge split-pole magnetic spectrograph. Elastic and inelastic alpha-particle scattering was observed with surface barrier detectors, both as excitation functions at = 172,8 POT. 0, for alpha energies between 9 MeV and 17 MeV (covering pure coulomb excitation and interference), and as an angular distribution for ANTPOT.100 Ru at 22 MeV. The deformation parameters were extracted by means of DWBA fits to these data, employing a collective form factor within an analysis method critically established in the present work. The original nuclear structure information thus obtained gives evidence for an increase of the nuclear mass deformation as one or two neutrons pairs are added, but in a definitely less pronounced way than that of the charge deformation. The very good agreement between our results obtained with both deuterons and alphas, and with coulomb excitation experiments, validates the method of measurement and analysis.

Este trabalho apresenta o procedimento que desenvolvemos e empregamos para determinar os valores a serem adotados para as energias de um conjunto de raios gama comumente utilizados como padrões de calibração, bem como sua respectiva matriz de covariância, esta obtida pela primeira vez. A matriz de covariância entre as energias destes padrões revelou muitos casos de correlações com valores absolutos maiores que 0,8, correlações estas que precisam ser corretamente consideradas para não comprometer a qualidade das análises efetuadas com o uso daquelas energias. No procedimento desenvolvido foi considerada a relação entre as energias dos raios gama (em múltiplos de eV) e as constantes fundamentais das quais dependem: h, e, c e o parâmetro de rede do Silício (aSi), o que possibilitou atualizar os resultados para as constantes fundamentais recomendadas de 2002. Uma metodologia para a inclusão de novos resultados experimentais ao conjunto de padrões de modo a preservar sua auto-consistência também foi desenvolvida neste trabalho. Este método considera adequadamente as covariâncias e atualiza todo o conjunto de padrões para incorporar as novas informações experimentais em uma única etapa. Por fim, utilizamos as metodologias de análise desenvolvidas e o conjunto de padrões aqui recomendados para analisar dados de medidas dos raios gama do decaimento do 233U e, assim, estudar a adequação de três diferentes modelos de estrutura nuclear para o 229Th, bem como as energias de excitação dos estados nucleares. A energia do primeiro estado excitado do 229Th, um estado metaestável de energia inferior a 10 eV, foi determinada com base naqueles diferentes modelos. / This work presents the procedure which we have developed and employed to determine the values to be adopted for the energies of a set of gamma-rays in common use as calibration standards, publishing for the fist time their respective covariance matrix. Several correlations with absolute values exceeding 0.8 were found, revealing the necessity of considering correctly the covariance matrix in any analysis to be done with the use of these standards in order not to interfere with the quality of the analysis. The procedure here presented considers correctly the relation between the gamma-ray energies (given in eV) and the fundamental constants h, e, c, and the lattice parameter (aSi), allowing the updating of the set with respect to the 2002 recommended values for those constants. A methodology for the inclusion of new experimental results in the set of standards, in a way which preserve its selfconsistency, was also developed in this work. In this method the updating of the whole set of standards is performed in a single step, while considering adequately the covariances. Finally, the standard set recommended here and the methodology developed in this work were employed to analyze data of gamma-rays measurement which follow the 233U decay and therewith to decide about the adequacy of three different nuclear structure models for 229Th and the excitation energy of its nuclear states. The energy of the first excited state of 229Th, a meta-stable state of less than 10 eV, was determined taking into account those different models.