A new beamline for resonant excitation of beams with electromagnetic fields and lasers (REBEL) and stopping and trapping of radioactive isotopes for precision experiments (STRIPE).

Abstract

We present two newly constructed experimental setups-REBEL (Resonant Excitation of Beams with Electromagnetic fields and Lasers) and STRIPE (Stopping and Trapping of Radioactive Isotopes for Precision Experiments)-integrated into a single offline beamline at KU Leuven. REBEL is designed for collinear laser spectroscopy of ion bunches, including isobaric separation with a multi-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer, enabling high-sensitivity measurements of mass-selected fast-ion beams. In contrast, STRIPE focuses on the deceleration, trapping, and laser cooling of ions in a segmented linear Paul trap, optimized for long interrogation times and precision spectroscopy. The shared infrastructure features stable high-voltage operation (<10 ppm), modular vacuum sections, and a fast-beam switchyard to route ions to either experiment. Initial results include a mass-resolving power of R ≈ 12 900 in REBEL and successful ion trapping and laser cooling of ions with a kinetic energy of 10 keV in STRIPE, with improved performance achieved using a frequency-modulated cooling laser. This dual-system platform enables the development and benchmarking of advanced spectroscopy and trapping techniques and is compatible with future operation at radioactive ion beam facilities.