β-delayed fission of 180Tl

Abstract

The detailed analysis of the β-delayed fission data of 180Tl is presented. The experiment was performed by producing a pure beam of 180Tl by means of highly selective resonance laser ionization followed by mass separation with the ISOLDE (CERN, Geneva) isotope separator. A surprising asymmetric mass distribution of fission fragments from 180Hg, the daughter of 180Tl β decays, was observed. Here, the energy calibration of the silicon detectors, which is crucial for a proper determination of the fission fragments' energy and mass split, is presented and the total kinetic energy and its dependence on the mass split ratio is discussed. A more precise β-delayed fission probability PβDF(180Tl)=3.2(2)×10-3% was deduced. © 2013 American Physical Society.