Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Laser resonance ionization mass spectroscopy (RIMS) of radioactive isotopes has become the method of choice to produce intense, pure isotope beams at radioactive ion beam facilities worldwide. At TRIUMF the resonance ionization laser ion source (TRILIS) is used for more than 75% of all radioactive ion beams (RIB) delivered to the Canadian and international users of the isotope separator and accelerator facility. By now laser ionization schemes for 42 different elements are in use online for isotope delivery from our all solid state laser RILIS. With this discovery grant program I seek to push the boundaries of current laser resonance ionization mass spectroscopy of radioactive isotopes to provide isotopes previously not accessible, isotope beams of unprecedented purity and intensity for subatomic- and nuclear-physics and medical isotope R&D alike. The targeted elements are the actinide-, lanthanide- as well as selected heavy elements. To this end Rydberg states, and preferrably autoionizing resonances must be found and characterized to develop laser ionization schemes. In heavy atomic systems also the atomic hyperfine structure must be determined as laser resonance ionization becomes sensitive to hyperfine structure (HFS) and optical isotope shifts. Based on previous successes with the ion-guide laser ion source, which allows to deliver virtually isobar-free RIB, further improvements to selectivity and sensitivity of RILIS will be pursued and ionization spectroscopy performed. These developments require (i) reduced linewidth lasers, while conserving pulse power and repetition rate, (ii) and ion source optimizations to improve atom-laser beam overlap and beam geometry, and advances in (iii) ionization schemes, moving towards 2-photon Doppler-free techniques. Collinear atom- and laser beam resonance ionization in fast atomic beams is a Doppler-free spectroscopy method at our disposal for fundamental spectroscopy. The students supported through the discovery grant will be trained to conduct independent laser resonance ionization mass spectroscopy off-line and hands on. This develops their expertise to undertake selected development projects on laser systems, ion sources and laser resonance ionization to complete an online proof of principle experiment and learn to transfer developments directly to on-line beam delivery. The students experience work at a large scale, international research facility and grow into our existing collaborations (currently the EU training network "laser ionization of actinides", CERN-ISOLDE etc.) and gain a skill set that will make them highly sought after in the field of laser resonance ionization and ion sources, academia and industry. The discovery goals are towards novel laser systems and ion sources for highest sensitivity in-source spectroscopy to measure atomic isotope shifts, hyperfine structures, nuclear moments - with direct impact on radioactive ion beams to enable nuclear- and subatomic physics experiments.