Introductory Muon Science

Muons are unstable elementary particles that are found in space, which can also be produced in particle accelerators to an intensity a billion times greater than that occurring naturally. This book describes the various applications of muons across the spectrum of the sciences and engineering. Scientific research using muons relies both on their basic properties as well as the microscopic interaction between them and surrounding particles such as nuclei, electrons, atoms and molecules. Examples of research that can be carried out using muons include muon catalysis for nuclear fusion, the application of muon spin probes to study microscopic magnetic properties of advanced materials, electron labelling to help in the understanding of electron transfer in proteins, and non-destructive element analysis of the human body. Cosmic ray muons can also be used to study the inner structure of volcanoes. Half-title......Page 3 Title......Page 5 Copyright......Page 6 Contents......Page 7 Preface......Page 13 Abbreviations......Page 15 1.1.1 Mass of the muon......Page 19 1.1.2 Lifetime of the muon......Page 20 1.3 Fundamental interactions of the muon......Page 22 1.3.1 Electromagnetic (EM) interaction......Page 23 1.4.2 Asymmetry of electron/positron emission in muon decay......Page 27 1.5 Other fundamental muon physics......Page 31 REFERENCES......Page 33 2.1 MeV accelerator muons......Page 35 2.1.1 Continuous and pulsed muons......Page 38 2.1.2 Muons from pion decay in flight......Page 40 2.1.3 Surface positive muons......Page 42 2.1.5 Beam optics components for MeV muons......Page 43 2.2 eV-keV slow muons......Page 44 2.2.1 Thermal Mu and the laser resonant ionization method for slow mu+ generation......Page 45 2.2.3 Frictional cooling......Page 48 2.3 Large acceptance advanced muon channel......Page 50 2.4.2 100 GeV muon beam for the EMC experiment......Page 54 2.5 GeV-TeV cosmic-ray muons......Page 55 REFERENCES......Page 56 3.1 Stopping muons in matter and polarization change......Page 58 3.2.1 Diamagnetic mu+......Page 66 3.2.2 Paramagnetic muonium......Page 67 REFERENCES......Page 68 4.1 Basic properties of the ground state of muonic atoms......Page 69 4.2 Muonic atom formation mechanism......Page 73 4.3 Cascade transitions in muonic atoms......Page 75 4.4 Nondestructive elemental analysis with muonic X-rays and decay electrons......Page 78 4.5.1 Improving X-ray detection methods......Page 82 4.5.3 CCD method......Page 84 REFERENCES......Page 85 5.1 Concept of muon catalysis of nuclear fusion......Page 87 5.3 Fusion reaction in a small muonic molecule......Page 92 5.4 Neutral muonic atom thermalization......Page 97 5.5 Muon transfer among hydrogen isotopes......Page 99 5.6 Formation of muonic molecules......Page 100 5.7 Muon sticking and regeneration in the muCF cycle......Page 107 5.7.2 X-ray method......Page 108 5.8.1 A practical energy source using muCF......Page 111 5.8.2 14 MeV neutron source using muCF......Page 114 REFERENCES......Page 115 6 Muon spin rotation/relaxation/resonance: basic principles......Page 118 6.1 Muon spin rotation......Page 119 6.2 Muon spin relaxation......Page 122 ZF relaxation under static random fields......Page 123 ZF relaxation in the presence of dynamical effects......Page 125 Dynamic case: LF-decoupling of fluctuating field......Page 126 6.2.3 Longitudinal field decoupling of muonium (Mu)......Page 127 6.2.4 Level-crossing resonance (LCR)......Page 129 6.3 Muon spin resonance......Page 130 6.4 mu+SR, MuSR, and mu-SR......Page 131 6.4.2 muSR of paramagnetic Mu: MuSR......Page 132 6.5 Experimental methods of muSR: continuous vs pulsed......Page 133 6.5.1 Continuous muSR......Page 134 6.5.2 Pulsed muSR......Page 136 6.6.1 Advanced muon spin rotation measurements......Page 138 Under zero field......Page 139 Under external longitudinal field......Page 140 6.6.3 Advanced muon spin resonance measurements......Page 141 REFERENCES......Page 142 7.1 Application of muSR to studies of the intrinsic properties of condensed matter......Page 144 7.1.1 Determination of the mu+ site in solids......Page 145 Studies of the magnetic-phase diagram......Page 146 7.2.1 Hyperfine fields at interstitial mu+ in ferromagnets......Page 148 7.4 Probing spin dynamics in random and/or frustrated spin systems......Page 150 7.5.1 Magnetism in high-Tc superconductors......Page 151 7.5.2 Penetration depth and vortex states in high-Tc superconductors......Page 155 7.6 Probing magnetic ordering in exotic magnetic materials......Page 157 REFERENCES......Page 158 8.1 mu+ localization and diffusion in condensed matter......Page 160 8.1.1 mu+ diffusion in Cu (fcc) and other pure metals......Page 163 8.1.2 mu diffusion in KCl and other ionic crystals......Page 166 8.2.1 Methods so far applied......Page 168 8.2.2 Muonium-like states in semiconductors......Page 169 8.2.3 Muonium in alkali halides......Page 170 8.4 Probing electron transfer in polymers and macromolecules: labeled-electron method......Page 173 8.4.1 Formation and decay of muonic radicals in conducting polymers......Page 175 8.4.2 Probing electron transfer in biological macromolecules; muSR life science......Page 178 8.5.3 Mu chemical reactions in solids......Page 183 8.6 Paramagnetic mu-O probe......Page 184 REFERENCES......Page 185 9.1 Penetration of cosmic-ray muons through large-scale matter......Page 188 9.2.2 Correction due to multiple scattering and range straggling......Page 192 9.2.5 Tomographic imaging......Page 194 9.3.2 Segmented two-counter system......Page 195 9.4 Results of some feasibility studies......Page 196 9.5 Prospects for volcanic eruption prediction......Page 197 REFERENCES......Page 202 10.1 Nonlinear muon effects......Page 203 10.2 Production of muonic antihydrogen and CPT theorem......Page 205 10.3 The mu+ mu- atom......Page 206 10.4 Muonium free drop and lepton gravitational constant......Page 207 10.5 Advanced neutrino sources with slow mu+......Page 208 10.6 The mu+ mu- colliders with slow mu+ and mu-......Page 211 10.7 Mobile TeV muon generator and disaster prevention......Page 212 REFERENCES......Page 214 Further reading......Page 215 Index......Page 217 This volume describes applications of muons in science and engineering. Research using muons relies on their basic properties and their microscopic interactions with surrounding particles. Examples of muon research include muon catalysis for nuclear fusion; the application of muon spin probes to study microscopic magnetic properties of materials; electron labeling to help in the understanding of electron transfer in proteins; and non-destructive element analysis of the human body. Cosmic ray muons can also be used to study the inner structure of volcanoes. Scientific research using the fundamental particle known as the muon depends upon the muon's basic particle properties and also on the microscopic (atomic-level) interactions of muons with surrounding particles such as nuclei, electrons, atoms, and molecules.