Search for double beta decay of $^{136}$Ce and $^{138}$Ce with HPGe gamma detector
arXiv:1409.2734 · doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2014.08.072
Abstract
Search for double $β$ decay of $^{136}$Ce and $^{138}$Ce was realized with 732 g of deeply purified cerium oxide sample measured over 1900 h with the help of an ultra-low background HPGe $γ$ detector with a volume of 465 cm$^3$ at the STELLA facility of the Gran Sasso National Laboratories of the INFN (Italy). New improved half-life limits on double beta processes in the cerium isotopes were set at the level of $\lim T_{1/2}\sim 10^{17}-10^{18}$~yr; many of them are even two orders of magnitude larger than the best previous results.
21 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; version accepted for publication on Nucl. Phys. A