skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Nuclear-spin-dependent weak-interaction effects in atoms

Thesis/Dissertation ·
OSTI ID:6934298

This thesis analyzes alternative ways of studying weak-interaction effects in atoms. The traditional path has been to investigate nuclear-spin-independent weak forces in heavy atoms in the presence of static electric fields. These have concentrated on optical transitions between excited states, which are enhanced by a factor Z/sup 3/. Results from calculations of two alternative parity-nonconserving effects in the ground states of heavy atoms are presented here. In the first case, a weak induced dipole moment connecting the hyperfine substrates in the ground states of alkali-like atoms and ions was calculated. The nuclear-spin-dependent interaction is enhanced by a factor of Z/sup 2/. However, it is contended that the longer coherence time of ground states makes parity experiments more sensitive than corresponding experiments on excited states and will permit a better comparison of theory and experiment. The calculations were carried out using single particle potentials with the Sternheimer method. In the second case, a mixed polarizability of the ground states, proportional to both static electric and magnetic fields was calculated. This effect is induced by the nuclear-spin-independent weak interaction and was also calculated using both the nonrelativistic and relativistic Sternheimer methods with the same central potentials.

Research Organization:
Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor (USA)
OSTI ID:
6934298
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Thesis (Ph. D.)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English