Hope College Physics Department Research Experiences for Undergraduates Summer 2010 Project Summary

Accurate simulation of 1-100 MeV neutrons is essential for interpretation of data taken from scintillator arrays such as the Modular Neutron Array (MoNA). Since neutrons are uncharged, they interact with MoNA only in nucleon-nucleon scattering, and are indirectly detected by the presence of charged byproducts of these interactions. The neutron retains a portion of its initial energy, and can therefore interact elsewhere in the detector. These multiple detections make it difficult to determine the number of neutrons present in MoNA, and must therefore be reproduced with simulation to interpret data from MoNA. Geant4, a high-energy physics simulation, is capable of simulating the passage of particles through matter, but is designed for energies of several GeV, and must therefore be modified to model accurately the actions of neutrons in this lower energy regime.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Publications and Presentations:
“First Observation of Ground State Dineutron Decay: ¹⁶Be”, A. Spyrou, Z. Kohley, T. Baumann, D. Bazin, B.A. Brown, G. Christian, P.A. DeYoung, J.E. Finck, N. Frank, E. Lunderberg*, S. Mosby, W.A. Peters, A. Schiller, J.K. Smith, J. Snyder, M.J. Strongman, M. Thoennessen, and A. Volya. Phys. Rev. Lett. submitted(2011).
“Evidence for the ground-state resonance of ²⁶O”, E. Lunderberg*, P.A. DeYoung, Z. Kohley, H. Attanayake, T. Baumann, D. Bazin, D. Divaratne, S.M. Grimes, A. Haagsma, J.E. Finck, N. Frank, B. Luther, S. Mosby, T. Nagy*, G.F. Peaslee, A. Schiller, J. Snyder, A. Spyrou, M.J. Strongman, and M. Thoennessen. Phys. Rev. Lett. Submitted(2011).
“Exploring the Low-Z Shore of the Island of Inversion at N = 19”, G. Christian,N. Frank, S. Ash, T. Baumann, J. Brown, P. A. DeYoung, J. E. Finck, A. Gade, G. F. Grinyer, A. Grovom, J. D. Hinnefeld, E.M. Lunderberg*, B. Luther, M.Mosby, S. Mosby, T. Nagi*, G. F. Peaslee, W. F. Rogers, J. K. Smith, J. Snyder, A. Spyrou, M. J. Strongman, M. Thoennessen, M. Warren, D. Weisshaar, and A. Wersal. Phys. Rev. Lett. Submitted(2011).
“Population of a Virtual State in ²¹C and Constraints on Halo Nucleus ²²C”, S. Mosby, N.S. Badger*, T. Baumann, D. Bazin, M. Bennett*, J. Brown, G. Christian, P.A DeYoung,J.E Finck, M. Gardner*, J.D Hinnefeld, E.A Hook*, E.M Lunderberg*, B. Luther, D.A. Meyer, M. Mosby, G.F. Peaslee, W.F. Rogers, J.K. Smith, J. Snyder, A. Spyrou, M.J. Strongman, M. Thoennessen.  Phys. Lett. B, submitted(2011).
“Spectroscopy of ¹³Li”, E.M. Lunderberg*, C.C. Hall*, P.A. DeYoung, M. Thoennessen, J. Snyder, and Mona Collaboration. Division of Nuclear Physics of the APS meeting, East Lansing MI, October 2011.
“Analysis of Data from Neutron Detectors”, Eric Lunderberg. . 2011 Celebration of Undergraduate Research, Hope College, April 15, 2011.
“First observation of excited states in 12Li” C.C. Hall*, E.M. Lunderberg*, P.A. DeYoung, T. Baumann, D. Bazin, G. Blanchon, A. Bonaccorso, B.A. Brown, J. Brown, G. Christian, D.H. Denby*, J. Finck, N. Frank, A. Gade, J. Hinnefeld, C.R. Hoffman, B. Luther, S. Mosby, W.A. Peters, A. Spyrou, and M. Thoennessen. Phys. Rev. C 81, 021301(R) (2010).
"Spectroscopy of 12Li." by E. Lunderberg*, C. Hall*, P. DeYoung, A.Spyrou, M. Thoennessen, MoNA Collaboration. CEU Poster GB0.00070. Bull. Am. Phys. Soc. 54, (2009). Division of Nuclear Physics Fall Meeting. Waikoloa, Hawaii (2009).