Nuclear recoil spectroscopy of levitated particles

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel technique using levitated particles in optical traps to detect nuclear decay recoil, enabling precise isotopic analysis for nuclear forensics.

Contribution

It presents a new method for observing nuclear decay recoil in levitated particles, advancing nuclear material characterization capabilities.

Findings

Recoil detection with high positional resolution in levitated particles.

Potential for accurate isotopic composition analysis.

Application in nuclear forensic analysis.

Abstract

We propose a new method for the detection and characterization of nuclear decay processes. Specifically, we describe how nuclear decay recoil can be observed within small particles levitated in an optical trap with high positional resolution. Precise measurements of the magnitude of each recoil as well as their rate of occurrence can provide accurate information about the isotopic composition of a radioactive sample. We expect that this new technique for nuclear material characterization will be especially useful in the area of nuclear forensic analysis.