{"id":897898,"date":"2026-09-16T12:36:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-16T12:36:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/897898\/"},"modified":"2026-09-16T12:36:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T12:36:10","slug":"mysterious-gamma-rays-reveal-hidden-magnetism-inside-atomic-nuclei","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/897898\/","title":{"rendered":"Mysterious Gamma Rays Reveal Hidden Magnetism Inside Atomic Nuclei"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Structure<\/a>New results from an experiment at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams answer a fundamental question about the structure of atomic nuclei. Credit: FRIB<\/p>\n

Scientists have traced a decades-old gamma-ray mystery to hidden magnetic transitions inside atomic nuclei.<\/p>\n

For decades, nuclear physicists have faced a puzzling question: why do some atomic nuclei release far more low-energy gamma rays than expected?<\/p>\n

A new study led by the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB), with contributions from scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), may finally provide the answer. Published in Nature, the research offers new insight into the inner workings of atomic nuclei and could have important implications for astrophysics, nuclear energy, national security, and nuclear forensics.<\/p>\n

A Decades-Old Gamma-Ray Puzzle<\/p>\n

Gamma rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation, just like visible light and radio waves, but they carry much more energy. When an atomic nucleus is in an excited state, it can release gamma rays as it decays into a lower and more stable energy state.<\/p>\n

For years, scientists have noticed that some nuclei produce an unexpectedly large number of low-energy gamma rays. This phenomenon, known as \u201clow-energy enhancement,\u201d has been difficult to explain. It does not appear in every nucleus, and researchers have had no reliable way to predict where it will occur.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis low-energy enhancement wasn\u2019t predicted by theory, so it was kind of a shock to the community when it was first observed,\u201d said Eleanor Ronning, lead author of the study and former FRIB graduate student. \u201cIt is difficult to predict where [low-energy enhancement] occurs \u2014 we don\u2019t know which nuclei will exhibit it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new findings provide strong evidence that the effect is caused by magnetic transitions within the nucleus.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a key step forward,\u201d said Andrea Richard, co-lead of the study, former postdoctoral researcher at LLNL and current assistant professor at Ohio University. \u201cWe now have a consistent explanation that connects experimental observations with theory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Separating Electric and Magnetic Decay<\/p>\n

To investigate the mystery, the researchers measured gamma rays produced when a radioactive isotope of copper decayed into zinc. Using FRIB\u2019s specialized instruments and experimental capabilities, the team was able to separate two distinct types of nuclear decay.<\/p>\n

In one case, the decay involved an electric transition. As the copper nucleus changed, its protons shifted their positions.<\/p>\n

The other decay followed a magnetic transition. In this process, neutrons and protons inside the nucleus effectively flipped their internal magnetic orientations.<\/p>\n

Only the magnetic transition produced the unusual increase in low-energy gamma rays. That result showed that the enhancement is magnetic in origin.<\/p>\n

The experiment was proposed jointly by Ronning and Richard. Along with Richard\u2019s work as a postdoctoral researcher, LLNL scientists contributed technical expertise and helped monitor the experiment around the clock during a full week of continuous measurements.<\/p>\n

Implications Beyond a Single Nucleus<\/p>\n

Although the experiment focused on only one nucleus, the results could improve scientists\u2019 understanding of nuclear behavior much more broadly.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can improve the knowledge of our stockpile performance and interpretation of past test program results using the improved theory based on these discoveries,\u201d said author and LLNL scientist Darren Bleuel. \u201cIn addition, we can improve nuclear forensics \u2014 our ability to determine if a nuclear event has occurred and identify the most likely source.\u201d<\/p>\n

The findings could also strengthen models of nuclear reactions occurring in stars, supernovae and neutron star mergers \u2014 including the processes responsible for creating heavy elements \u2014 as well as improve understanding of reactions relevant to nuclear energy.<\/p>\n

Reference: \u201cMagnetic character of the low-energy enhancement in 70Zn\u201d by E. K. Ronning, A. L. Richard, S. N. Liddick, A. Spyrou, R. Ringle, H. Arora, H. C. Berg, J. M. Berkman, D. L. Bleuel, K. Bosmpotinis, S. E. Campbell, X. Chen, B. P. Crider, R. J. Coleman, P. A. DeYoung, A. A. Doetsch, H. Erington, T. Gaballah, N. D. Gamage, E. C. Good, B. Greaves, A. C. Hartley, J. Huffman, C. M. Ireland, C. Izzo, R. Jain, A. C. Larsen, J. E. L. Larsson, R. S. Lubna, F. M. Maier, M. J. Mogannam, D. M\u00fccher, M. R. Mumpower, G. Owens-Fryar, T. H. Ogunbeku, D. P. Scriven, M. K. Smith, C. S. Sumithrarachchi, A. Sweet, K. Taft, A. Tsantiri, S. Uthayakumaar and M. Wiedeking, 15 July 2026, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038\/s41586-026-10758-3<\/a><\/p>\n

Never miss a breakthrough: Join the SciTechDaily newsletter.<\/a>
Follow us on Google<\/a> and Google News<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New results from an experiment at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams answer a fundamental question about the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":897899,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[52840,49,48,31899,74843,27374,314,66],"class_list":["post-897898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-physics","tag-atomic-physics","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-doe","tag-gamma-ray","tag-lawrence-livermore-national-laboratory","tag-physics","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=897898"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/897898\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/897899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=897898"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=897898"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=897898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}