This grant supports nuclear physics research in several areas: 1) Study of nuclear reactions of astrophysical importance, induced by secondary, unstable (i.e. radioactive) nuclear beams using a unique superconducting magnet system for focusing the secondary beam. This work will be done at the University of Notre Dame tandem accelerator. 2) Installation, development, and operation of a very large solid angle superconducting-solenoid spectrometer and detector system at the Michigan State University -NSCL heavy-ion facility for the study of radioactive-beam experiments and heavy-ion induced reactions. 3) Study of charge-exchange reactions with emphasis on non-spinflip transitions and the isovector giant monopole resonance at the Indiana University Cyclotron using a large spectrometer in continued collaboration with a Dutch research group. 4) Re/Os beta-decay lifetime measurement for use in cosmochronology and to set a limit on the neutrino mass. A large volume low background proportional counter will be further developed for this purpose. 5) Study of heavy-ion induced reactions, including the production of high-energy nucleons and alpha particles at forward angles using the Michigan State University Superconducting Cyclotron. 6) Refinement of nuclear mass models and their application in predicting nuclear stability.
