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Updated: May 31, 2026

Preparing an Isotopically Pure 229Th Ion Beam for Studies of 229mTh
Published on: May 3, 2019
Wigner crystals of 229Th for optical excitation of the nuclear isomer
C J Campbell1, A G Radnaev, A Kuzmich
1School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0430, USA.
Abstract:
We have produced laser-cooled Wigner crystals of 229Th3+ in a linear Paul trap. The magnetic dipole (A) and electric quadrupole (B) hyperfine constants for four low-lying electronic levels and the relative isotope shifts with respect to 232Th3+ for three low-lying optical transitions are measured. Using the hyperfine B constants in conjunction with prior atomic structure calculations, a new value of the spectroscopic nuclear electric quadrupole moment Q=3.11(16) eb is deduced. These results are a step towards optical excitation of the low-lying isomer level in the 229Th nucleus.
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