Nuclear physics

News and Updates

Prototype superconducting sensor is a square chip with lines running through it.

Spotlight: Looking Beyond the Standard Model to Explore Neutron Decay

April 12, 2022

This prototype NIST sensor may help solve some mysteries of the universe by looking beyond the Standard Model. The Standard Model is a long-standing theory that

Impeding the Impedance: Research Reveals How to Design a Better Next-Generation Lithium-Ion Battery

November 16, 2021

The newest generation of lithium-ion batteries now under development promises a revolution in powering cell phones, electric vehicles, laptops and myriad other

A man in a white lab coat and black face mask (Jeffrey Herrera) stands near a wall of protective equipment like long gloves.

Spotlight: Jeffrey Herrera’s Journey Into Science and Safety

October 4, 2021

Jeffrey Herrera is one of NIST’s health physicists, ensuring our ability to safely use radioactive materials for research and supporting radiation safety

Projects and Programs

Fundamental Physics: Precision Measurement of the Branching Ratio and Energy Spectrum of Radiative Neutron Decay

Completed

Neutron beta-decay is typically considered as a three-body process, but it is always accompanied by inner-bremsstrahlung soft photons, n → e− + p + νe + γ. This

Applied: Methods in Neutron Detection and Spectroscopy

Ongoing

We continue to work improving techniques in fast neutron detection using segmented spectrometers based on the principle of capture-gating. Our approach employs

Fundamental Physics: Search for Time Reversal Violation in Polarized Neutron Decay (emiT)

Completed

The "emiT" experiment searched for time-reversal symmetry violation term in neutron beta decay. It did so by measuring electron-proton coincidence events from

Security (Archive): Neutron Detector Replacement Program

Completed

The Department of Homeland Security/Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DHS/DNDO) is pursuing a course to transform 3He alternative technologies into integrated

Publications

Results from the Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST)

June 9, 2022

Author(s)

Jeffrey S. Nico, V Barinov, Bruce Cleveland, S Danshin, H Ejiri, Steve Elliott, D Frekers, Vladimir Gavrin, Valery Gorbachev, D Gorbunov, Wick Haxton, Tanya Ibragimova, I Kim, Yu Kozlova, L Kravchuk, V Kuzminov, B Lubsandorzhiev, Yu Malyshkin, R Massarczyk, Victor Matveev, Ilya Mirmov, A Petelin, R Robertson, D Sinclair, A Shikhin, V Tarasov, G Trubnikov, E Veretenkin, John Wilkerson, A Zvir

The Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST) was designed to investigate the deficit of electron neutrinos, nu_e, observed in previous gallium-based

Experimental Realization of Neutron Helical Waves

May 11, 2022

Author(s)

Michael G. Huber, Charles W. Clark, Dmitry Pushin, Connor Kapahi, Lisa DeBeer-Schmitt, David Cory, Huseyin Ekinci, Melissa Henderson, Dusan Sarenac

Methods of preparation and analysis of structured waves of light, electrons, and atoms have been advancing rapidly. Despite the proven power of neutrons for

Quantum computing hardware for HEP algorithms and sensing

April 19, 2022

Author(s)

Corey Rae McRae

Quantum information science harnesses the principles of quantum mechanics to realize computational algorithms with complexities vastly intractable by current

Realization and dissemination of activity standards for medically important alpha-emitting radionuclides

March 4, 2022

Author(s)

Denis E. Bergeron, Karsten Kossert, Sean Collins, Andrew Fenwick

Interest in targeted cancer therapy with alpha-emitting radionuclides is growing. To evaluate emerging radiotherapeutic agents requires precise activity

Tools and Instruments

Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectrometer

Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy uses positrons to probe material defects/voids/free volume at the sub-nm scale. The general working principle is

Material Analysis Using Neutron Depth Profiling

Light elements such as helium, lithium, boron, and nitrogen are essential constituents in materials that enable energy technologies; lithium ion batteries