Using HECTOR for Cross Section Measurements of 102Pd(p,γ)103Ag

The High EffiCiency TOtal absorption spectrometeR (HECTOR) consists of 16 scintillating crystals that are made of thallium-doped sodium iodide (NaI(Tl)). Each of the crystals is coupled to two photomultiplier tubes (PMT) and the detector is oriented to create a cubic array surrounding a target. This cubic array orientation allows for simultaneous measurements of the individual gamma (γ) rays produced during the de-excitation of the reaction products, creating a coverage of nearly 4π steradian. HECTOR was constructed to measure capture reactions relevant for the nucleosynthesis process at low energies. The work presented here focuses on a (p,γ) reaction on ¹⁰²Pd, one of the p-nuclei produced during the p-process. The experiment was conducted at the University of Notre Dame using the FN tandem accelerator at the Nuclear Science Lab. A highly enriched ¹⁰²Pd target was bombarded with a proton beam at energies between 3.5-8 MeV in 200 keV steps. The measured cross section is compared with experimental data found in literature and theoretical models.