Current Projects:

The WMU/NSCL triple alpha experiment:

Goal: improve the error bars on the triple alpha reaction by an indirect method consisting in improving the error bars on the pair-decay branch of the 7.65 MeV excited state in ¹²C. Data were taken at the Tandem Laboratory in Western Michigan University (April 2007) and are currently being analyzed. Extensive GEANT4 simulations were also done to help in the detector design, PMT gain matching, and data analysis.

The experiment in simple words (a nugget from Sam Austin)

Contributed talk on the triple-alpha experiment for the NIC-IX (Nuclei In the Cosmos) conference: Improving the rate of the triple-alpha process

Proceedings for the NIC-IX conference: NIC-IX_050.pdf

Stellar evolution simulations of massive stars:

This project is a collaboration with A. Heger (LANL/UCSC). The KEPLER code was used to study the influence of the current uncertainties in the helium burning reactions (triple alpha and ¹²C(α,γ)¹⁶O) on the nucleosynthesis of weak s-process isotopes by massive stars.

Past Projects:

Design, construction and testing of the detector for the WMU/NSCL triple alpha experiment

The design was optimized using extensive GEANT4 simulations. A paper is in draft.

Stellar evolution simulations of massive stars:

The KEPLER code was used to explore the dependence of pre-supernova evolution and supernova nucleosynthesis yields for medium-weight isotopes (A=16 to 40) on the current uncertainties in the helium burning reactions (triple alpha and ¹²C(α,γ)¹⁶O) and on the differences in solar abundance sets.

A paper ensued, accepted for publication by the Astrophysical journal ( C. Tur, A. Heger, S. M. Austin, On the Sensitivity of Massive Star Nucleosynthesis and Evolution to Solar Abundances and to Uncertainties in Helium Burning Reaction Rates, arXiv:0705.4404v4[astro-ph]).

CLAS g7 experiment

Goal: determine whether any modification in the mass and width of the vector mesons ρ, ω and, Φ occur when the latter are produced in the dense nuclear medium. Two papers ensued:

R. Nasseripour, M. H. Wood, C. Djalali, D. P. Weygand, C. Tur, U. Mosel, P. Muehlich and the CLAS Collaboration, Search for Medium Modifications of the Meson, submitted to Phys. Rev. Lett. (arXiv:0707.2324 [nucl-ex]).

M. H. Wood, R. Nasseripour, D. P. Weygand, C. Djalali, C. Tur, U. Mosel, P. Muehlich and the CLAS Collaboration, Light Vector Mesons in the Nuclear Medium, in draft, to be submitted to Phys. Rev. C

Contact Information:

tur@nscl.msu.edu

NSCL
Michigan State Univ.
1 Cyclotron Laboratory
East Lansing, MI 48824-1321

Phone: 517 333 6312
Office: W104

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