We report the first direct measurement of the $^{14}text{O}$ superallowed Fermi $beta$-decay $Q_{EC}$-value, the last of the so-called traditional nine superallowed Fermi $beta$-decays to be measured with Penning trap mass spectrometry. $^{14}$O, alo
ng with the other low-$Z$ superallowed $beta$-emitter, $^{10}$C, is crucial for setting limits on the existence of possible scalar currents. The new ground state $Q_{EC}$ value, 5144.364(25) keV, when combined with the energy of the $0^+$ daughter state, $E_x(0^+)=2312.798(11)$~keV [Nucl. Phys. A {bf{523}}, 1 (1991)], provides a new determination of the superallowed $beta$-decay $Q_{EC}$ value, $Q_{EC}(text{sa}) = 2831.566(28)$ keV, with an order of magnitude improvement in precision, and a similar improvement to the calculated statistical rate function $f$. This is used to calculate an improved $mathcal{F}t$-value of 3073.8(2.8) s.
The migration of intense ionization created in helium buffer gas under the influence of applied electric fields is considered. First the chemical evolution of the ionization created by fast heavy-ion beams is described. Straight forward estimates of
the lifetimes for charge exchange indicate a clear suppression of charge exchange during ion migration in low pressure helium. Then self-consistent calculations of the migration of the ions in the electric field of a gas-filled cell at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory (NSCL) using a Particle-In-Cell computer code are presented. The results of the calculations are compared to measurements of the extracted ion current caused by beam pulses injected into the NSCL gas cell.
Significant systematic errors in high-precision Penning trap mass spectrometry can result from electric and magnetic field imperfections. An experimental procedure to minimize these uncertainties is presented for the on-line Penning trap mass spectro
meter ISOLTRAP, located at ISOLDE/CERN. The deviations from the ideal magnetic and electric fields are probed by measuring the cyclotron frequency and the reduced cyclotron frequency, respectively, of stored ions as a function of the time between the ejection of ions from the preparation trap and their capture in the precision trap, which influences the energy of their axial motion. The correction parameters are adjusted to minimize the frequency shifts.
