L.D. van Buuren

Performance of a hydrogen/deuterium polarized gas target in a storage ring

Abstract The performance of a high-density polarized hydrogen/deuterium gas target internal to a medium-energy electron storage ring is presented. Compared to our previous electron scattering experiments with tensor-polarized deuterium at NIKHEF (Zhou et al., Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A 378 (1996) 40; Ferro-Luzzi et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 77 (1996) 2630; Van den Brand et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 78 (1997) 1235; Bouwhuis et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 (1999) 687; Zhou et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 (1999) 687) the target figure of merit, ( polarization ) 2 × luminosity , was improved by more than an order of magnitude. The target density was increased by upgrading the flux of nuclear-polarized atoms injected into the storage cell and by using a longer (60 cm ) and colder (∼70 K ) storage cell. A maximal target thickness of 1.2 (1.1)±0.1×10 14 nuclei / cm 2 was achieved with deuterium (hydrogen). With typical beam currents of 110 mA , this corresponds to a luminosity of about 8.4 (7.8)±0.8×10 31 e − nuclei cm −2 s −1 . By reducing the molecular background and using a stronger target guide field, a higher polarization was achieved. The target was used in combination with a 720 MeV polarized electron beam stored in the AmPS ring (NIKHEF) to measure spin observables in electron–proton and electron–deuteron scattering. Scattered electrons were detected in a large acceptance magnetic spectrometer. Ejected hadrons were detected in a single time-of-flight scintillator array. The product of beam and target vector polarization, P e P t , was determined from the known spin-correlation parameters of e ′ p quasi-elastic (or elastic) scattering. With the deuterium (hydrogen) target, values up to P e P t =0.49±0.03 (0.32±0.03) were obtained with an electron beam polarization of P e =0.62±0.04 (0.56±0.03) as measured with a Compton backscattering polarimeter (Passchier et al., Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A 414 (1998) 4988). From this, we deduce a cell-averaged target polarization of P t =0.78±0.07 (0.58±0.07), including the dilution by unpolarized molecules.

A polarized hydrogen/deuterium atomic beam source for internal target experiments

Abstract A high-brightness hydrogen/deuterium atomic beam source is presented. The apparatus, previously used in electron scattering experiments with tensor-polarized deuterium (Ferro-Luzzi et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 77 (1996) 2630; van den Brand et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 78 (1997) 1235; Zhou et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 (1998) 687; Bouwhuis et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 (1999) 3755), was configured as a source for internal target experiments to measure single- and double-polarization observables, with either polarized hydrogen or vector/tensor polarized deuterium. The atomic beam intensity was enhanced by a factor of ∼2.5 by optimizing the Stern–Gerlach focusing system using high tip-field (∼1.5 T ) rare-earth permanent magnets, and by increasing the pumping speed in the beam-formation chamber. Fluxes of (5.9±0.2)×10 16 1 H/s were measured in a ∅12 mm ×122 mm compression tube with its entrance at a distance of 27 cm from the last focusing element. The total output flux amounted to (7.6±0.2)×10 16 1 H/s .

Spin-dependent electromagnetic response of few-body systems.

We report on the experimental program with polarized electrons and polarized few-body systems at the internal target facility of the NIKHEF electron storage ring. With a polarized deuterium internal target, absolute measurements of unprecedented accuracy have been performed for the analyzing powers T20 and T22 in elastic electron-deuteron scattering at transferred four-momenta 1.1 < Q < 2.8 fm−1. Results for a first measurement of the tensor analyzing power in quasi-elastic scattering are also presented. These data provide new constraints for descriptions of the deuteron spin structure and for reaction mechanism effects. Quasi-elastic electron scattering from polarized 3He may provide precise information on the S′ and the D-wave parts of the 3He ground-state wave function, the neutron form factors, and the role of spin-dependent reaction mechanism effects. We have started an experimental program at NIKHEF where polarized 3He and polarized electrons are used, in combination with large acceptance electron and hadron detectors. Data were taken for the transverse (Ay0) and longitudinal (A′z) asymmetries at Q ⋍ 2 fm−1. We outline the performance of the target and detectors.

Recoil detection with a polarized He-3 target

Abstract The ultra-thin gas targets used in storage ring internal target experiments allow low energy, heavy nuclei to emerge from the target region. A detector capable of analyzing these nuclei provides unique access to many nuclear reactions. We report here the first use of such a detector in conjunction with a polarized 3 He internal target and a polarized electron beam. The results of using the detector as a luminosity monitor and as a polarimeter to measure the product of beam and target polarizations are presented. The ability to study coherent pion production via the reactions 3 He → ( e → , e ′ 3 He )π 0 and 3 He → ( e → , e ′ 3 H )π + is shown along with the ability of the detector to unambiguously separate the two- and three-body breakup channels of the reaction 3 He → ( e → , e ′p) .

Electron scattering at NIKHEF with polarized beam and targets

We present the Internal Target Facility of the NIKHEF 900 MeV polarized electron storage ring. We give some results which illustrate the presently unique opportunity offered by this facility to study the spin structure of the nucleon, 2-body and 3-body system by the measurement of spin-dependent electron scattering observables.

SPIN EFFECTS IN MEDIUM-ENERGY ELECTRON-3HE SCATTERING

Abstract New physics can be accessed by scattering polarized electrons from a polarized 3He internal gas target. It is discussed how the asymmetries for the reactions 3 He ( e , e′), 3 He ( e , e′p) 3 He ( e , e′n) 3 He ( e , e′d) and 3 He ( e , e′pn) may provide precise information of the S′ and the D-wave parts of the 3He ground-state wave function, the neutron form factors, and the role of spin-dependent reaction mechanism effects. The experiment uses up to 900 MeV (polarized) electrons from the AmPS storage ring in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in combination with large acceptance electron and hadron detectors.

Measurement of spin correlation parameters in the Δ region for the 1H⃗(e⃗,e′) reaction

Sensitivity to the quadrupole transition form factors (C2 and E2) of the N-Δ excitation can be obtained by measuring double-polarization electromagnetic observables in the Δ-region. Such measurements have been carried out with the internal target facility at NIKHEF. Radiative corrections are an important ingredient of the data interpretation. They need to be evaluated carefully, taking into account their spin-dependence, in order to compare the data to theoretical models of pion electroproduction. From these comparisons the E2/M1 and C2/M1 ratios can be extracted.

Longitudinally polarized electrons in a storage ring below 1 GeV

We report on the results of studies of the longitudinal electron polarization in the AmPS storage ring at NIKHEF. The ring was operated using a partial Siberian snake at the first magic energy, and a full Siberian snake between 440 MeV and 720 MeV. We have investigated the effect of high beam currents in the ring, and found that some of the electron polarization is lost if the beam current becomes larger than ≈120 mA.

Polarized deuterium internal target at AmPS (NIKHEF)

We describe the polarized deuterium target internal to the NIKHEF medium-energy electron storage ring. Tensor polarized deuterium was produced in an atomic beam source and injected into a storage cell target. A Breit-Rabi polarimeter was used to monitor the injected atomic beam intensity and polarization. An electrostatic ion-extraction system and a Wien filter were utilized to measure on-line the atomic fraction of the target gas in the storage cell. This device was supplemented with a tensor polarization analyzer using the neutron anisotropy of the 3H(d,n)α reaction at 60 keV. This method allows determining the density-averaged nuclear polarization of the target gas, independent of spatial and temporal variations. We address issues important for polarized hydrogen/deuterium internal targets, such as the effects of spin-exchange collisions and resonant transitions induced by the RF fields of the charged particle beam.

A Compton backscattering polarimeter for measuring longitudinal electron polarization

Compton backscattering polarimetry provides a fast measurement of the polarization of an electron beam in a storage ring. Since the method is nondestructive, the polarization of the electrons can be monitored during internal target experiments. At NIKHEF a Compton polarimeter has been constructed to measure the polarization of the longitudinally polarized electrons stored in the AmPS ring. First results obtained with the polarimeter, the first Compton polarimeter to measure the polarization of a stored longitudinally polarized electron beam, are presented in this paper.