Measurement of the Neutron Mass and Radioactive Assay

This experiment gives you the opportunity to study high energy photons from radioactive decays. These photons have energies that are characteristic of the specific initialand finalstate nuclear energy levels and therefore provide a means of studying the energy levels (similar to the use of optical photons to study electronic energy levels in atoms), nuclear reactions, and also provide a way to identify radioactive nuclear species in test samples. The experiment provides for open-ended investigation of gamma ray spectroscopy; it typically requires three weeks of lab work.