A novel technique for lifetime measurements in heavy neutron-rich nuclei: The reversed plunger

A novel technique, the so-called ‘reversed plunger’, was used for the first time to measure lifetimes of nuclear excited states on the order of picoseconds in heavy neutron-rich nuclei at the Legnaro National Laboratories. Preliminary spectra show that the commissioning of the technique was successfully performed employing the Advanced Gamma-Ray Tracking Array (AGATA), the magnetic spectrometer PRISMA, and the plunger device in the reversed configuration.