Evidence for the $^{15}\text{Be}$ ground state from $^{12}$Be$+3$n events

TL;DR

This study provides evidence for a new low-energy state in unbound $^{15}$Be, suggesting it may be its ground state, based on invariant mass spectroscopy of $^{12}$Be and three neutrons after a neutron-pickup reaction.

Contribution

The paper reports the first evidence of a $^{15}$Be state lower than previously observed, indicating a potential identification of its ground state through decay energy reconstruction.

Findings

Identification of a resonance at 330 keV in $^{15}$Be.

Evidence suggests a new state lower than previous observations.

Supports the existence of the $^{15}$Be ground state.

Abstract

Background: $^{15}$Be is an unbound nuclide that has been observed to decay by one-neutron emission. Shell model calculations predict two low-lying states in its energy spectrum, however, only a single resonance has been observed from coincident measurements of $^{14}$Be+n. It has been suggested that the yet unobserved state may decay sequentially through the first excited state in $^{14}$Be followed by a two-neutron emission to $^{12}$Be. Purpose: The ground state of $^{15}$Be has yet to be confirmed. A search for this predicted $^{15}$Be state by reconstructing $^{12}$Be$+3$n events allows a possible determination of its ground state properties. Methods: A neutron-pickup reaction was performed with a $^{14}$Be beam on a CD$_2$ target to populate unbound $^{15}$Be states. Decay energies were reconstructed using invariant mass spectroscopy by detecting $^{12}$Be daughter nuclei in coincidence with up to three neutrons. Results: Evidence for at least one resonance in $^{15}$Be is presented based on the reconstruction of $^{12}$Be$+3$n events. Through comparison with simulations, the energy of the strongest resonance in the analyzed reaction and decay channel is determined to be $E_{^{12}Be+3n}=330(20)$ keV. Conclusions: The inclusion of a new $^{15}$Be state among the $^{12}$Be+$3$n events lower in relative decay energy than the previous $^{14}$Be+n observations provides the best fit to the data. Because this suggested new state would be lower in energy than the previously observed state, it is a candidate for the ground state of $^{15}$Be.