Search for $^{22}$Na in novae supported by a novel method for measuring femtosecond nuclear lifetimes

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel method combining particle correlations and velocity profiles to measure femtosecond nuclear lifetimes, aiming to better understand $^{22}$Na production in novae and improve gamma-ray detection prospects.

Contribution

A new experimental technique for measuring femtosecond nuclear lifetimes using combined particle and gamma-ray spectrometry is developed and applied to $^{23}$Mg states.

Findings

Placed strong limits on $^{22}$Na production in novae.

Explained the non-observation of $^{22}$Na gamma rays to date.

Constrained the detectability of $^{22}$Na with future observatories.

Abstract

Classical novae are thermonuclear explosions in stellar binary systems, and important sources of $^{26}$Al and $^{22}$Na. While gamma rays from the decay of the former radioisotope have been observed throughout the Galaxy, $^{22}$Na remains untraceable. The half-life of $^{22}$Na (2.6 yr) would allow the observation of its 1.275 MeV gamma-ray line from a cosmic source. However, the prediction of such an observation requires good knowledge of the nuclear reactions involved in the production and destruction of this nucleus. The $^{22}$Na($p,\gamma$)$^{23}$Mg reaction remains the only source of large uncertainty about the amount of $^{22}$Na ejected. Its rate is dominated by a single resonance on the short-lived state at 7785.0(7) keV in $^{23}$Mg. In the present work, a combined analysis of particle-particle correlations and velocity-difference profiles is proposed to measure femtosecond nuclear lifetimes. The application of this novel method to the study of the $^{23}$Mg states, combining magnetic and highly-segmented tracking gamma-ray spectrometers, places strong limits on the amount of $^{22}$Na produced in novae, explains its non-observation to date in gamma rays (flux < 2.5x$10^{-4}$ ph/(cm$^2$s)), and constrains its detectability with future space-borne observatories.