Institute for Structure and Nuclear Astrophysics

Three graduate students (Adam Clark, Austin Nelson, and Craig Reingold) of ISNAP participated in this year’s Notre Dame Day live broadcast on April 23rd to gain votes for the Graduate Physics Society (GPS). During the broadcast, the students of the GPS performed a physics demo in which they used a sledgehammer to smash a cinder block on the chest of the broadcast host and Notre Dame alumni Vic Lombardi. This is a classic physics demonstration that illustrates the concepts pressure, inertia, and the conservation of energy.…

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Professor Ann Simon's paper “Impact of the α optical model potential on the γ-process nucleosynthesis” investigates the impact of the nuclear properties on the γ-process nucleosynthesis. γ-process is a nucleosynthesis scenario responsible for production of proton-rich isotopes of heavy nuclei. Since the reaction network that describe the γ-process is based on model predictions of the rates of all the reactions involved (only in few cases these can be measured directly) understanding of the impact of the current models of the nuclear properties is important for constraining the predictions of the network calculations. In this work, the analysis focused on the α-optical model potential; future work will investigate impact of other parameters, e.g. γ-strength function.

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Nuclear graduate student, Nirupama Sensharma has been selected to the 2017 cohort of the NSF-sponsored training program Social Responsibilities of Researchers (SRR) in the Reilly Center.

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Professor Graham Peaslee's research paper titled “Fluorinated Compounds in U.S. Fast Food Packaging” has received national attention after the first 2 weeks of its published release on February 1 in Environmental and Science Technology Letters…

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In December 2016, four graduate students from the NSL traveled to Shanghai, China to participate in the joint CNA/JINA-CEE Winter School on Nuclear Astrophysics. The focus of the school was to enhance international collaborations among young researchers from nuclear physics, astrophysics, and astronomical observations.

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The Twin Solenoid (TwinSol) exotic beam separator was the first facility dedicated to exotic beam production in the U.S. Recent improvements will greatly enhance its ability to provide high-quality exotic beams for nuclear physics and astrophysics research.

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Michael Wiescher, Director of the Nuclear Science Laboratory is the recipient of the 2017 Heraeus Visiting Professor Award of the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe University of Frankfurt, Germany.

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TwinSol group adjusted the position of their second solenoid in order to provide improved radioactive beams to their new target location.

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On November 11, the Notre Dame College of Science hosted the “Let’s Have a Moment of Science” outreach event in San Antonio, as part of the Shamrock Series which attracted about 1,200 middle schools students from around the city. Twenty-four representatives from different STEM fields at Notre Dame performed educational demonstrations at the event.

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Michael Wiescher, Freimann Professor of Physics and director of the Nuclear Science Laboratory, gave an invited talk at the 2^nd International Conference on the History of Physics in Pöllau, Austria, on the topic of the “Life and Cosmologies of Arthur Erich Haas”. 

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On November 19, ISNAP and JINA-CEE will be hosting a Girl Scout Workshop: Getting to Know Nuclear, allowing scouts to earn a badge created for the Girl Scouts of Northern Indiana Michiana.

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