Publikationen von
Dr. Renate Märtin
Alle Publikationen des HI Jena
2021
Abstract: In this paper, we present an experimental and theoretical study of excitation processes for the heaviest stable helium-like ion, that is, He-like uranium occurring in relativistic collisions with hydrogen and argon targets. In particular, we concentrate on angular distributions of the characteristic K alpha radiation following the K -> L excitation of He-like uranium. We pay special attention to the magnetic sub-level population of the excited 1s2l(j) states, which is directly related to the angular distribution of the characteristic K alpha radiation. We show that the experimental data can be well described by calculations taking into account the excitation by the target nucleus as well as by the target electrons. Moreover, we demonstrate for the first time an important influence of the electron-impact excitation process on the angular distributions of the K alpha radiation produced by excitation of He-like uranium in collisions with different targets.
2020
Abstract: Recently, the contribution of the generalized Breit interaction to electron impact ionization was identified for the first time in a high‐Z system, namely, hydrogen‐like uranium. This study employed a measurement of the relative population of the j = 1/2 and j = 3/2 states of the L shell by projectile excitation in collision of U91+ with hydrogen and nitrogen targets. However, for a rigorous test of ion–atom collision theory, also the absolute excitation cross sections are of great importance. In the present work, we report on our efforts to extend the previous study to a determination of the absolute projectile excitation cross sections by normalization to the well‐known radiative electron capture process.
Abstract: We present a measurement of K‐shell transitions in H‐like gold (Au78+) using specially developed transmission type crystal spectrometers combined with Ge(i) microstrip detectors. The experiment has been carried out at the Experimental Storage Ring at GSI in Darmstadt. This is a first high‐resolution wavelength‐dispersive measurement of a K‐shell transition in a high‐Z H‐like ion, thus representing an important milestone in this field. Ideas on possible future improvements are discussed as well.
2019
Abstract: The radiative electron capture (REC) into the K shell of bare Xe ions colliding with a hydrogen gas target has been investigated. In this study, the degree of linear polarization of the K-REC radiation was measured and compared with rigorous relativistic calculations as well as with the previous results recorded for U92+. Owing to the improved detector technology, a significant gain in precision of the present polarization measurement is achieved compared to the previously published results. The obtained data confirms that for medium-Z ions such as Xe, the REC process is a source of highly polarized x rays which can easily be tuned with respect to the degree of linear polarization and the photon energy. We argue, in particular, that for relatively low energies the photons emitted under large angles are almost fully linear polarized.
Abstract: We have studied the K-shell excitation of He-like uranium (U90+) in relativistic collisions with hydrogen and argon atoms. Performing measurements with different targets, as well as with different collision energies, enabled us to explore the proton- (nucleus-) impact excitation as well as the electron-impact excitation process for the heaviest He-like ion. The large fine-structure splitting in uranium allowed us to partially resolve excitation into different L-shell levels. State-of-the-art relativistic calculations which include excitation mechanisms due to the interaction with both protons (nucleus) and electrons are in good agreement with the experimental findings. Moreover, our experimental data clearly demonstrate the importance of including the generalized Breit interaction in the treatment of the electron-impact excitation process.
2018
Abstract: Accurate spectroscopy of highly-charged high-Z ions in a storage ring is demonstrated to be feasible by the use of specially adapted crystal optics. The method has been applied for the measurement of the is Lamb shift in hydrogen-like gold (Au78+) in a storage ring through spectroscopy of the Lyman x-rays. This measurement represents the first result obtained for a high-Z element using high-resolution wavelength-dispersive spectroscopy in the hard x-ray regime, paving the way for sensitivity to higher-order QED effects.
2016
Abstract: We report on the first elastic hard x-ray scattering experiment where the linear polarization characteristics of both the incident and the scattered radiation were observed. Rayleigh scattering was investigated in a relativistic regime by using a high- Z target material, namely gold, and a photon energy of 175 keV. Although the incident synchrotron radiation was nearly 100% linearly polarized, at a scattering angle of θ=90° we observed a strong depolarization for the scattered photons with a degree of linear polarization of +27% ± 12% only. This finding agrees with second-order quantum electrodynamics calculations of Rayleigh scattering, when taking into account a small polarization impurity of the incident photon beam which was determined to be close to 98%. The latter value was obtained independently from the elastic scattering by analyzing photons that were Compton-scattered in the target. Moreover, our results indicate that when relying on state-of-the-art theory, Rayleigh scattering could provide a very accurate method to diagnose polarization impurities in a broad region of hard x-ray energies.
Abstract: The exploration of the unique properties of stored and cooled beams of highly-charged ions as provided by heavy-ion storage rings has opened novel and fascinating research opportunities in the realm of atomic and nuclear physics research. Since the late 1980s, pioneering work has been performed at the CRYRING at Stockholm and at the Test Storage Ring (TSR) at Heidelberg. For the heaviest ions in the highest charge-states, a real quantum jump was achieved in the early 1990s by the commissioning of the Experimental Storage Ring (ESR) at GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung (GSI) in Darmstadt where challenging experiments on the electron dynamics in the strong field regime as well as nuclear physics studies on exotic nuclei and at the borderline to atomic physics were performed. Meanwhile also at Lanzhou a heavy-ion storage ring has been taken in operation, exploiting the unique research opportunities in particular for medium-heavy ions and exotic nuclei.
Abstract: Single-photon spectroscopy of pulsed, high-intensity sources of hard X-rays — such as laser-generated plasmas — is often hampered by the pileup of several photons absorbed by the unsegmented, large-volume sensors routinely used for the detection of high-energy radiation. Detectors based on the Timepix chip, with a segmentation pitch of 55 μm and the possibility to be equipped with high-Zsensor chips, constitute an attractive alternative to commonly used passive solutions such as image plates. In this report, we present energy calibration and characterization measurements of such devices. The achievable energy resolution is comparable to that of scintillators for γ spectroscopy. Moreover, we also introduce a simple two-detector Compton polarimeter setup with a polarimeter quality of (98 ± 1)%. Finally, a proof-of-principle polarimetry experiment is discussed, where we studied the linear polarization of bremsstrahlung emitted by a laser-driven plasma and found an indication of the X-raypolarization direction depending on the polarization state of the incident laser pulse.
2015
Abstract: In this work, we report on an experiment that investigated the elastic scattering of linearly polarized 175 keV photons on a gold target. A combined measurement of the angular distribution and the linear polarization of the scattered photons was performed using standard germanium detectors and a double-sided Si(Li) strip polarimeter. Since the data analysis is still in progress, we will show results in forthcoming papers and present here how the polarimeter was used to identify a lack of shielding during the experiment.
Abstract: Metallic magnetic calorimeters are energy dispersive particle detectors that are operated at temperatures below 100 mK. Applied to x-ray spectroscopy they combine the high energy resolution of crystal spectrometers with the large energy bandwidth of semiconductor detectors. After the absorption of a photon its energy is converted into heat. A paramagnetic alloy converts the temperature change into a change of magnetization that is read out by a sensitive superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer. With such a metallic magnetic calorimeter we performed two successful measurements at the internal gas target of the experimental storage ring at GSI. In the first beamtime lithium-like Au-ions were targeted on a N2 and a Xe gas target, respectively. In the second beamtime we observed a projectile beam of bare Xe ions interacting with a Xe gas target. In both experiments we achieved an energy resolution below 60 eV from 0 keV to 60 keV . We were able to detect K-lines of Xe ions of different charge states, including the Lyman series up to Ly-η and could resolve the Ly-β-doublet in H-like Xe.
Abstract: By applying novel-type position sensitive x-ray detectors as Compton polarimeters we recently performed a study of the linear polarization of Lyman-α₁ radiation following radiative electron capture into initially bare uranium ions. It was found that a model-independent determination of the ratio of the E1 and M2 transition amplitudes, and consequently of the corresponding transition rates, is feasible by combining the linear polarization data with a measurement of the angular distribution of the emitted radiation. In this work a detailed description of the underlying experimental technique for combined measurements of the linear polarization and the angular distribution of characteristic transitions in high-Z ions is presented. Special emphasis is given to the application of two, two-dimensional position-sensitive x-ray detectors for Compton polarimetry of hard x-rays. Moreover, we demonstrate the polarimeter efficiency of such detector systems can be significantly improved if events, where the charge is spread over neighboring segments, are reconstructed to be used in the polarization analysis.
Abstract: We have studied the excitation of H-like and He-like uranium (U^91+ and U^90+ ) in relativistic collisions with gaseous targets by observing the subsequent x-ray emission. The experiment was conducted at the ESR storage ring of the GSI accelerator facility in Darmstadt, Germany. The measurements were performed with a newly developed multi-phase target at different collision energies. This enabled us to explore the proton (nucleus) impact excitation as well as the electron impact excitation processes in the relativistic collisions. The large fine-structure splitting in uranium allowed us to unambiguously resolve excitation to different L-shell levels. Moreover, information about the population of different magnetic sublevels has been obtained via an angular differential study of the decay photons associated with the subsequent de-excitation process. The experimental results are compared with calculations performed within the relativistic framework including excitation mechanisms due to both protons (nucleus) and electrons.
Abstract: The experimental investigation of quantum-electrodydamic contributions to the binding energies of inner shells of highly charged heavy ions requires an accurate spectroscopy in the region of hard x-rays suitable at a limited source strength. For this purpose the focusing compensated asymmetric Laue crystal optics has been developed and a twin-spectrometer assembly has been built and commissioned at the experimental storage ring of the GSI Helmholtzzentrum Darmstadt. We characterize the crystal optics and demonstrate the usefulness of the instrumentation for accurate spectroscopy of both stationary and fast moving x-ray sources. The experimental procedures discussed here may also be applied for other spectroscopic studies where a transition from conventional germanium x-ray detectors to crystal spectrometers seems too demanding because of low source intensity.
Abstract: The response of a double-sided segmented Si(Li) detector system has been investigated. The detector has been irradiated with a collimated, highly linearly polarized beam of 53.2 keV photons from the synchrotron radiation source PETRA III at DESY. The detector was mounted on a platform that could be moved with μm precision thus allowing for a defined beam position on the detector surface. In this paper, the effects of the isolation gaps (gap width = 50 μm) between adjacent segments (strips) were studied, in particular with respect to the effect of charge sharing. The fraction of such charge sharing events increases from about 5% (beam hits center of a strip) to over 50% when the beam is focused just on a gap. The fraction of reconstructed Compton scattering events, which is interesting for Compton polarimetry, amounts to about 3% with the beam impinging at a strip center and 2.8% on average. It can therefore be concluded that events related to charge sharing do not critically degrade the performance of the detector as a Compton polarimter.
Abstract: Hard x-ray polarimetry of radiation emitted in collisions of heavy ions, electrons or photons with matter provides detailed information on the collision dynamics as well as of the atomic structure in the presence of extreme field strengths. Moreover, it also opens a route for polarization diagnosis of spin-polarized ion and electron beams which, for example, might be useful in future parity non-conservation studies. Owing to recent progress in the development of highly segmented solid-state detectors, a novel type of polarimeter for the hard x-ray regime has become available. Applied as Compton polarimeters, two-dimensional position-sensitive x-ray detectors now allow for precise and efficient measurements of x-ray linear polarization properties. In this report recent polarimetry studies using such detector systems are reviewed.
2013
Abstract: The leading-order positron–atom bremsstrahlung is investigated within the rigorous relativistic approach based on the partial-wave representation of the Dirac wave functions in the external atomic field. Approximating the atomic target by an effective local potential, we calculate the Stokes parameters of the emitted photon for different polarizations of the initial positron. The results for positron–atom bremsstrahlung are compared with analogous data for the electron–atom bremsstrahlung.
Abstract: The future x-ray spectroscopy and polarimetry experiment program of the SPARC collaboration at GSI and FAIR relies strongly on the availability of two-dimensional position-sensitive, energy- and time-dispersive thick semiconductor detector systems, including the appropriate signal processing electronics. To meet these demands, the development of a compact and scalable data acquisition system that has higher rate acceptance compared to commercial VME electronics by employing digital pulse processing electronics was started.
Abstract: In this work, the digital readout of semiconductor detectors in combination with digital filters was investigated. Both non-segmented high-purity germanium and segmented planar lithium-drifted silicon detectors were used. In each case, photons from a stationary americium ((241)^Am) gamma source were detected. The resulting preamplifier output pulses were digitized at a fixed sampling frequency and stored entirely. Digital filters were applied to the stored waveforms to extract time and energy information. The performance of different digital filters was compared. The optimum energy resolution obtained was comparable with the value resulting from an analogue readout system based on standard nuclear instrumentation module and versatile module Europe bus electronics.
Abstract: In recent years several measurements of the orbital electron capture half-lives of few-electron ions have been carried out employing the storage ring ESR at GSI. Hydrogen-like and helium-like (140)^Pr and (142)^Pm as well as hydrogen-like (122)^I were studied. Half-lives of the corresponding fully ionized nuclides provide the three-body β^(+) decay constants.
Abstract: The utilization of the resonant atomic electron–ion collision process of dielectronic recombination (DR) as a tool to probe nuclear properties via isotope shifts and hyperfine effects is discussed. Based on DR, this resonance reaction spectroscopy at electron coolers of heavy-ion storage rings denotes a versatile approach to access nuclear parameters such as charge radius, spin, magnetic moment or lifetimes of long-lived excited nuclear states (isomers). The high sensitivity of DR allows for experiments with artificially synthesized rare isotopes and isomers. Recent experimental progress in the preparation of such exotic species at the ESR storage ring in Darmstadt is presented. The DR technique is exemplified for the case of (234)^Pa^(88+) (Z = 91).
Abstract: We report on a study of target-thickness effects on the degree of the linear polarization as well as on the emission probability of bremsstrahlung arising in the collision of 100 keV electrons with thin gold targets. For this purpose an experiment at the electron source SPIN at the TU Darmstadt as well as Monte Carlo simulations have been performed. The results indicate that for high- Z targets the degree of linear polarization is significantly altered by straggling of the electrons inside the target.
Abstract: The K shell excitation of H-like uranium (U91+) in relativistic collisions with different gaseous targets has been studied at the experimental storage ring at GSI Darmstadt. By performing measurements with different targets as well as with different collision energies, we were able to observe for the first time the effect of electron-impact excitation (EIE) process in the heaviest hydrogenlike ion. The large fine-structure splitting in H-like uranium allowed us to unambiguously resolve excitation into different L shell levels. State-of-the-art calculations performed within the relativistic framework which include excitation mechanisms due to both protons (nucleus) and electrons are in good agreement with the experimental findings. Moreover, our experimental data clearly demonstrate the importance of including the generalized Breit interaction in the treatment of the EIE process.
2012
Abstract: Fully relativistic treatment of the electron-atom and positron-atom bremsstrahlung is reported. The calculation is based on the partial-wave expansion of the Dirac scattering states in an external atomic field. A comparison of the electron and positron bremsstrahlung is presented for the single and double differential cross sections and the Stokes parameters of the emitted photon. It is demonstrated that the electron-positron symmetry of the bremsstrahlung spectra, which is nearly exact in the nonrelativistic regime, is to a large extent removed by the relativistic effects.
Abstract: We report on a study of the polarization transfer between transversely polarized incident electrons and the emitted x rays for electron-atom bremsstrahlung. By means of Compton polarimetry we performed for the first time an energy-differential measurement of the complete properties of bremsstrahlung emission related to linear polarization, i.e., the degree of linear polarization as well as the orientation of the polarization axis. For the high-energy end of the bremsstrahlung continuum the experimental results for both observables show a high sensitivity on the initial electron spin polarization and prove that the polarization orientation is virtually independent of the photon energy.
Abstract: Novel position-sensitive x-ray detectors are presented that, when applied as Compton polarimeters, enable precise and efficient linear polarization studies of hard x-rays up to several 100 keV. We give an analytical formula which yields a rough estimate of the polarimeter efficiencies of such detector systems. Moreover, we briefly summarize a recent linear polarization measurement of the Lyman-α1 radiation in a H-like high-Z system, namely U91+.
Abstract: We present a Monte Carlo code dedicated to the simulation of bremsstrahlung arising in collisions of polarized electrons with thin target foils. The program consists of an electron transport algorithm taking into account elastic electron-nucleus scattering and inelastic collisions with target electrons as well as a treatment of polarized-electron bremsstrahlung emission. Good agreement is found between the predictions of the electron transport code and data stemming from other simulation programs and experiments. In addition, we present first results from the bremsstrahlung simulation which indicate a significant decrease in the degree of linear polarization of bremsstrahlung even for the thinnest gold targets considered.
Abstract: The half-lives of fully ionized and hydrogen-like (H-like) I-122 ions have been measured in a heavy-ion storage ring. The β^(+)-decay constants for both charge states and the electron capture (EC) decay constant of H-like ions have been determined. The EC-decay constant in H-like I-122 ions λ^(H-like)_(EC) = 7.35(33) · 10^(−4) s^(−1) is, within the uncertainty, the same as the one in neutral atoms. This result is in agreement with the estimates of recent theoretical considerations on the EC-decay of few-electron ions that explicitly take into account the conservation of the total angular momentum of the nucleus plus lepton(s) system and its projections. No firm confirmation could be concluded from our results on the predicted effect that allowed Gamow-Teller transitions become forbidden if the initial and final total angular momenta are not equal.
2011
Abstract: One- and few-electron ions traditionally serve as an important testing ground for fundamental atomic structure theories and for the effects of QED, relativity and electron correlation. In the domain of high nuclear charges, new opportunities open up for precise testing and consolidating of the present understanding of the atomic structure in the regime of extreme electromagnetic fields. In this review, the current progress in experimental investigations of the heaviest H- and He-like systems at GSI Darmstadt is presented together with the planned future developments.
Abstract: The linear polarization of bremsstrahlung radiation emitted in collisions of spin‐polarized and unpolarized electrons with carbon and gold targets has been measured for an incident kinetic energy of 100 keV. We present preliminary results for the degree of linear polarization for incident unpolarized electrons as a function of bremsstrahlung photon energy.
Abstract: The future international accelerator Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) encompasses 4 scientific pillars containing at this time 14 approved technical proposals worked out by more than 2000 scientists from all over the world. They offer a wide range of new and challenging opportunities for atomic physics research in the realm of highly‐charged heavy ions and exotic nuclei. As one of the backbones of the Atomic, Plasma Physics and Applications (APPA) pillar, the Stored Particle Atomic Physics Research Collaboration (SPARC) has organized tasks and activities in various working groups for which we will present a concise survey on their current status.
Abstract: We present the first clear identification and highly accurate measurement of the intra-shell transition 1s2p^3P_2 → 1s2s^3S_1 of He-like uranium performed via x-ray spectroscopy. The present experiment was conducted at the gas-jet target of the ESR storage ring in GSI (Darmstadt, Germany), where a Bragg spectrometer, with a bent germanium crystal, and a Ge(i) detector were mounted. Using the ESR deceleration capabilities, we performed a differential measurement between the 1s2p^3P_2→1s2s^3S_1 He-like U transition energy, at 4510 eV, and the 1s^2 2p^2P_(3/2) → 1s^2 2s^2S_(1/2) Li-like U transition energy, at 4460 eV. By a proper choice of the ion velocities, the x-ray energies from the He- and Li-like ions could be measured, in the laboratory frame, at the same photon energy. This allowed for a drastic reduction of experimental systematic uncertainties, principally due to the Doppler effect, and for a comparison with theory without the uncertainties arising from one-photon quantum electrodynamics predictions and nuclear size corrections.
Abstract: We present here a Monte Carlo program based on the EGS5 package for modeling the detector response of position-sensitive x-ray detectors. The program is used to estimate the polarimeter quality of two novel detector systems applied in Compton polarimetry. The validity of the underlying physical models is verified by comparing the simulation output to experimental data obtained at the experimental storage ring, ESR.
Abstract: The population of magnetic sublevels in hydrogen-like uranium ions has been investigated in relativistic ion–atom collisions by observing the subsequent X-ray emission. Using the gas target at the experimental storage ring facility we observed the angular emission of Lyman-α radiation from hydrogen-like uranium ions. The alignment parameter for three different interaction energies was measured and found to agree well with theory. In addition, the use of different gas targets allowed for the electron-impact excitation process to be observed.
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität, Fakultät für Physik und Astronomie (2011)
Abstract: The present thesis reports on the study of the linear polarization properties of bremsstrahlung produced in polarized electron atom collisions. The experimental investigation of bremsstrahlung photons has been performed using the polarized electron source (SPIN) at the TU Darmstadt. Gold and carbon targets were bombarded with 100 keV electrons whose spin was oriented parallel, anti-parallel and transverse with respect of the beam axis. In addition, an unpolarized electron beam was used for a reference measurement. For the detection of the bremsstrahlung photons, a novel Si(Li) Compton polarimeter has been employed at two different observation angles. This detector enabled the determination of the degree of linear polarization as well as the orientation of the polarization vector for various energies of the bremsstrahlung photons. The emphasis of the work was on the so-called polarization transfer where the polarization of the incoming electron spin influences the polarization of the emitted x-rays. This gives rise to an enhanced degree of linear polarization and to a rotation of the photon polarization vector with respect to the unpolarized case. Both effects were observed by comparing data for the unpolarized and the transversely polarized electron beam. The experimental results are in qualitative agreement with fully relativistic calculations.
2010
Abstract: We report the observation of an interference between the electric dipole (E1) and the magnetic quadrupole (M2) amplitudes for the linear polarization of the Ly-alpha(1) (2p(3/2) -> 1s(1/2)) radiation of hydrogenlike uranium. This multipole mixing arises from the coupling of the ion to different multipole components of the radiation field. Our observation indicates a significant depolarization of the Ly-alpha(1) radiation due to the E1-M2 amplitude mixing. It proves that a combined measurement of the linear polarization and of the angular distribution enables a very precise determination of the ratio of the E1 and the M2 transition amplitudes and the corresponding transition rates without any assumptions concerning the population mechanism for the 2p(3/2) state.
Abstract: We report on a novel two-dimensional position sensitive Si(Li) detector dedicated to Compton polarimetry of x-ray radiation arising from highly-charged ions. The performance of the detector system was evaluated in ion-atom collision experiments at the ESR storage ringe at GSI, Darmstadt. Based on the data obtained, the polarimeter efficiency is estimated in this work.
2009
Abstract: Many physical processes such as bremsstrahlung, synchrotron radiaton and radiative recombination produce polarized X-rays. However, only a few facilities are able to deliver tunable monoenergetic high quality beams of almost completely polarized X-rays to the user. We used radiative electron capture (REC) into the K-shell of bare xenon to produce tunable and highly linearly polarized X-rays in a storage ring environment (Fig. 1) which we confirmed by a dedicated compton polarimeter.
Abstract: We present the first observation of the 1s 2p^3P_2 → 1s 2s^3S_1 transition in He-like uranium. The experiment was performed at the internal gas-jet target of the ESR storage ring at GSI exploiting a Bragg crystal spectrometer and a germanium solid-state detector. Using the 1s^(2) 2p^2P_(3/2) → 1s^(2) 2s^2S_(1/2) transition in Li-like uranium as reference and the deceleration capabilities of the ESR storage ring, we obtained the first evaluation of the energy of an intra-shell transition for a He-like heavy ion.
Abstract: Recent advances in the development of 2D microstrip detectors open up new possibilities for hard x-ray spectroscopy, in particular for polarization studies. These detectors make ideal Compton polarimeters, which enable us to study precisely the polarization of hard x-rays. Here, we present recent results from measurements of Radiative Electron Capture into the K-shell of highly-charged uranium ions. The experiments were performed with a novel 2D Si(Li) Compton polarimeter at the Experimental Storage Ring at GSI. Stored and cooled beams of U^(91+) and U^(92+) ions, with kinetic energies of 43 MeV/u and 96 MeV/u respectively, were crossed with a hydrogen gasjet. The preliminary data analysis shows x-rays from the K-REC process, emitted perpendicularly to the ion beam, to be strongly linearly polarized.
Abstract: A dedicated Si(Li) Compton polarimeter combining energy and time resolution with a large detection area of 64 × 64 mm^2 and a two dimensional position resolution of 2 mm has been used for the first time to study the polarization of x‐rays emitted via radiative electron capture (REC) into the K and L‐shell of heavy highly charged ions. First data for the collision system 96.6 MeV/u U^(92+) → H_2 are presented. The angular distribution of the Compton scattered photons inside the detector indicates that both K‐ and L‐REC processes lead to the emission of strongly linearly polarized light.
Abstract: Particle and photon polarization phenomena occurring in collisions of relativistic ions with matter have recently attracted particular interest. Investigations of the emitted characteristic x-ray and radiative electron capture radiation has been found to be a versatile tool for probing our present understanding of the dynamics of particles in extreme electromagnetic fields. Owing to the progress in x-ray detector technology, in addition, accurate measurements of the linear polarization for hard x-ray photons as well as the determination of the polarization plane became possible. This new diagnostic tool enables one today to derive information about the polarization of the ion beams from the photon polarization features of the radiative electron capture process.