Optimizing the collinear resonance ionization spectroscopy technique for studies on exotic neutron- rich Cu isotopes near the N=50 magic shell gap

A very important observation in nuclear physics is that there are certain nuclei with configurations of protons and neutrons that have noticeably different properties. These are often referred to as ‘magic nuclei’, and are essential to our understanding of nuclear theory. A key question is to what extent our knowledge on the readily available magic nuclei can be extrapolated to more and more exotic cases. My research will focus on getting an understanding of one of the most important physics cases related to this question: 78Ni. Technological limits of current production facilities restrict us to looking at close relatives of 78Ni, namely certain isotopes of copper (76;77;78;79Cu).Experimental nuclear physics is only now reaching a point where these isotopes can be studied with sufficient depth. A large part of the proposed work will deal with further developing a novel, stateof- the-art technique, called Collinear Resonant Ionization Spectroscopy (CRIS). CRIS has been specifically designed for nuclei like 79Cu; nuclei produced in small amounts and in the presence of unavoidable contaminants. CRIS uses selective laser-ionization and efficient ion detection to circumvent both of these problems. The goals of my dissertation are twofold. First, technical improvements to the CRIS experiment. Once this development stage is complete, the second leg of the thesis can start; the experimental study of the properties of 76;77;78;79Cu, and what these observations imply for nuclear theory.