Nuclear Science References (NSR)
NSR Reference Paper
NIM A 640, 213 (2011)
Database version of October 3, 2023
The NSR database
is a bibliography of nuclear physics articles, indexed according to content and spanning
more than 100 years of research. Over 80 journals are checked
on a regular basis for articles to be included.
For more information, see the help page.
The NSR database schema and Web applications have undergone some recent changes.
This is a revised version of the NSR Web Interface.
Archive files from previous versions of NSR can be found here.
NSR Help Page
NSR database and Web interface are described in Brookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-94690-2011-JA (2011).
Complementary information is presented below:
General Information
Quick Search
Initialization parameters
Indexed Search
Text Search
View and Combine Lists
Recent References
NSR Link Manager
About NSR entries
Scope and completeness
The Nuclear Science References (NSR) database is an indexed bibiliography
of primary and secondary references in nuclear physics research. About
80 journals are regularly scanned for articles.
Recent references are added on a weekly basis. Approximately 3,800 entries
are added to the database annually.
Each entry in NSR is assigned an eight-character keynumber. The first
four digits of the keynumber give the publication year of the corresponding
reference.
Most of the entries include keyword abstracts, which provide
a brief summary of the subject matter in the given reference. These
abstracts are also used to generate the indexed quantities in the database.
There are several ways to retrieve reference lists from NSR. The Quick Search
on the main page allows a quick lookup of references for a given author
or nuclide.
Indexed retrieval allows a boolean "and" search
over several indexed categories (author, nuclide, etc.). Text retrieval
allows plain-text searching of the title and keyword fields.
Keynumber retrieval fetches the information for a specific
article, given the NSR keynumber.
Entries for certain theory and review articles may not include keywords abstracts,
if they do not deal with specific nuclides or reactions. These may still be
retrieved in other ways, including author, text, or keynumber searches. For more
information on the scope of articles included in the database, see the
Scope and completeness section below.
Every effort is made to maintain the accuracy of the database contents. We
urge users who find errors, either typographical or substantive, to report
them to us at nsr@bnl.gov.
The "Quick Search" option in the main page allows a simple retrieval of
references based on author, nuclide, for a given range of publication
years. For the allowed formats for author and nuclide inputs, see the
section on Indexed Search below. It should be noted that
if the "Initialization Parameters" are modified on one of the other pages, the
new parameters will be applied to subsequent "Quick Search" retrievals.
"Initialization parameters" are general parameters that you might want
to keep constant over several different searches.
- Publication year range: Search for articles within this range.
- Primary only: Checked for searches on primary references only, unchecked
for searches on primary and secondary references. (Note: prior to about 1973, no
distinction was made between primary and secondary references.)
- ENSDF Evaluators: Provides a simplified output that has
no limitations on the number of entries retrieved.
- Require measured quantity: If this box is checked, only entries with a "measured ..."
phrase in the keywords will be returned.
- Output year order: Arrange search results in ascending or descending year order.
- Output format: "HTML" provides output in formatted html, "Exchange" gives a text
file in the inter-lab exchange format, "Text" retrieves the entries in a plain-text format,
"BibTex" retrieves in a format useful in LaTex bibliographies,
and "Keynum" retrieves a list of keynumbers for references
matching your criteria. See below for examples of output formats.
- All entries/Entries added since: To search only entries added to the database since
a certain date, select the second radio button and specify a date in the fields provided.
The "indexed search" page allows a Boolean "and" search of up to three parameters.
The parameter type is chosen from a drop-down list, and the parameter value
entered into a text box. For many parameter types, a "browse" option is available,
which provides a list of allowed values and automatically fills in the "value" box
with the user's choice. Entries for which parameter type "(none)" is selected will
be ignored.
The following parameters are indexed:
- Author - Enter author's last name, and (optionally) one or two initials. Initials
should be followed by a period, and can come before or after the last name. If given after,
a comma should be used after the last name. Examples: "Smith", "A.Smith", "Smith,A.", "A.B.Smith".
Note that in a few cases, alternate versions of authors' names are
indexed, so that the name on the reference may not exactly match the name entered in the
search form. Only first and second initials are indexed; additional initials in the search parameter
will be ignored.
Collaboration names may also be entered in the author field. Long collaboration names are
truncated to 32 characters. For a list of collaborations, use the "Browse" Button.
- FirstAuthor - Same as above, but only consider references where given author
is first in the author list. Note that collaboration names are never listed as first author in NSR.
- Nuclide - Enter nuclide of interest in the format 76BR, 208Pb, 1H, etc.
The alternative format BR-76, PB-208 may also be used. To search on
all nuclei with a given mass or charge use
A=## or Z=## where ## is the mass or charge number of the nucleus, respectively. Entering just
the nuclide symbol (i.e., "Pb") will return only references where the symbol appears in the keywords
without a mass number; if you want references for all lead isotopes, use "Z=82" or "Z=Pb".
Nuclide symbols
are not case-sensitive except for n and N; the former will be interpreted as
neutron, the latter as nitrogen. "NN" may also be used as the symbol for neutron (i.e. "2n" and
"2NN" are treated the same).
- Target, Parent, and Daughter - These are special cases of the Nuclide search.
Input format is the same as for "Nuclide".
- Reaction - Enter the reaction of interest. Should be in the form (p,a) - may also
be entered without parentheses. Note that abbreviations are used for particle names:
A=alpha, B=beta, G=gamma. Examples of some other valid particles are PI+,K-,p-bar.
A list of reactions with a specified incident particle can be obtained by using the "Browse"
button. (A list of valid particles can be obtained by browsing on "Beam" - see below).
It is also possible to enter the target nuclide along with the reaction string: 15N(p,a), for instance.
- Incident - Enter incident particle. The "Browse" option gives a list of valid particles.
- Outgoing - Enter outgoing particle in reaction - i.e., "a" for (p,a), (a,na), etc,
reactions.
"Browse" has same functionality as it does for "Beam".
- Subject (also Measured, Deduced, Calculated) - Enter subject.
"Subject" option returns all instances, "Measured", "Deduced", "Calculated" require one of these words
at beginning of keyword phrase. Note that only very specific subject strings are indexed, based on what
is given in the keywords. "Browse" gives full list of indexed subjects.
- CODEN - This is a five-letter code associated with a given journal. For instance, the
coden for Phys.Rev. C is PRVCA. "Browse" returns a list of available codens, arranged alphabetically
by journal name. This list also lists a year range for each coden, because a given
journal may have had different codens in different years.
With rare exceptions, only primary sources have codens associated with them. In addition, early
entries (before about 1973) may be incomplete and lack coden information in the database.
- Topic - Enter the major keyword topic (Nuclear Structure, Nuclear Reactions, etc.).
You may also use the standard three-letter abbreviation (N-S, N-R, RAD, ...).
- Z(range),A(range) - Enter a numerical value for Z or A. This retrieves only papers where a
numerical range in the form "Z=10-20" or "A=3-210" appears in the keywords. In order to retrieve all
indexed nuclides with a given Z or A (i.e. all nuclides with Z=20 including
40Ca, 42Ca, ... , use the Nuclide parameter with "Z=20" or "Z=Ca" in the
value field, as described above.
The "text search" page can be used to search for references based on text matches in
the title and keyword fields. Searches can be restricted to one of
these fields, or can span both.
- Two text searches can be "anded" by using both fields on the entry form.
- Search strings must be at least three characters in length.
- The search is not case sensitive.
- When entering the text, spaces are allowed. Leading and trailing spaces will be
trimmed, unless the text is enclosed in double quotes. Using single or double
quotes inside the search string is not recommended.
- The search looks for an exact match, so wildcard characters should not be used.
- It should be noted that the text being searched has been modified from its "raw"
form. Special characters for indicating super- and sub-scripts have been removed,
so that to search on T1/2 one should use the string "T1/2". Also, special
symbols such as Greek characters have been "spelled out" (gamma, LAMBDA, ...) in the
text being searched.
This page, available if two or more queries have been executed, allows
one to view and combine previous retrievals. Each retrieval is listed in
the order it was performed. To view, use the "View" button to the right of
the query description. Output format and year-order will be determined by
the drop-down boxes near the top of the page.
To combine lists, use the drop-down boxes to specify the list numbers
and the desired operation ("AND", "OR", or "AND NOT"). The resulting
list will be generated and displayed when the "Combine" button is pushed.
To clear the list of retrievals, use the "Clear Lists" button at the
bottom of the page.
The following PDF files have a format similar to that which used to be published in the "Recent References" issues of Nuclear Data Sheets.
Entries included in these files contain experimental data on specific isotopes. Each file has two sections.
The first, "Keynumbers and Keywords", provides the keyword abstracts and brief bibliographic information, organized by isotope.
The second section, "References", includes more complete bibliographic information for each NSR entry.
Users may embed links to NSR reference information in html pages by using the
NSR "link manager". The URL for the link should be in the
form
http://www.nndc.bnl.gov/nsr/nsrlink.jsp?{keynum}[,{mode}]
where {keynum} is a valid eight-character NSR keynumber, and {mode} is
an optional retrieval mode specifier consisting of the single
character H, X, or B. 'H' specifies html-formatted output,
and is the default if no specifier is given. 'X' specifies
exchange-format output, and 'B' indicates that the browser
should be redirected to the publisher's page for the
reference, if a link is available in the database.
For example, the link
http://www.nndc.bnl.gov/nsr/nsrlink.jsp?2004HE05,X
will bring up the NSR entry, in exchange format,
corresponding to keynumber 2004HE05. Using the 'B'
option:
http://www.nndc.bnl.gov/nsr/nsrlink.jsp?2004HE05,B
will redirect the browser to the publisher's page for the article.
Each NSR entry consists of several fields, including Keynumber, Reference,
Title, Authors, and Keywords. The keywords are designed to
facilitate retrieval of references on specific quantities such as nuclide,
reaction, etc. Some entries, such as review articles or general theory
papers, may not have keywords assigned.
It should be noted that the NSR database has been in existence, in some form,
for several decades. Thus, while an effort has been made to maintain
consistency, there will be differences in how entries were prepared by
different compilers at different times.
Each set of keywords is prefaced by a "major topic" such as NUCLEAR REACTIONS
or RADIOACTIVITY. For historical reasons, most of these refer to the type of
experiment being carried out, rather than to the overall results of the
paper. For example, papers that use heavy-ion reactions to study high-spin
states will have NUCLEAR REACTION keywords rather than NUCLEAR STRUCTURE.
In general, NUCLEAR STRUCTURE keywords refer to calculations, or to analysis
of previously published data.
In HTML format, an entry will look like the following:
1989FA02
Phys.Lett. 218B, 137 (1989)
P.Fallon, P.Alderson, M.A.Bentley, A.M.Bruce, P.D.Forsyth, D.Howe, J.W.Roberts, J.F.Sharpey-Schafer, P.J.Twin,
F.A.Beck, T.Byrski, D.Curien, C.Schuck
Superdeformed Bands in 150Gd and 151Tb: Evidence for the influence of high-N intruder states
at large deformations
NUCLEAR REACTIONS 130Te(26Mg, 6n), E=145 MeV; 130Te(27Al, 6n), E=150 MeV;
measured γγ-coin, γγ(θ). 150Gd, 151Tb deduced levels, J, π,
superdeformed band structure, shapes, moments of inertia.
doi: 10.1016/0370-2693(89)91408-1
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First the keynumber is given (1989Fa02), then reference, authors, title (in italics), and keywords.
Some entries will also display a "digital object identifier" (doi) link, which will usually
take you to the publisher's page for the article.
Greek characters such as γ or other special characters may not display correctly
on older browsers. In such cases, users might want to use the "Text" format, in which special
characters are "spelled out". The example of the previous entry in text format is:
1989Fa02
Phys.Lett. 218B, 137 (1989)
P.Fallon, P.Alderson, M.A.Bentley, A.M.Bruce, P.D.Forsyth, D.Howe,
J.W.Roberts, J.F.Sharpey-Schafer, P.J.Twin, F.A.Beck, T.Byrski,
D.Curien, C.Schuck
Superdeformed Bands in 150Gd and 151Tb: Evidence for the influence
of high-N intruder states at large deformations
NUCLEAR REACTIONS 130Te(26Mg,6n),E=145 MeV; 130Te(27Al,6n),E=150 MeV;
measured gamma gamma-coin,gamma gamma(theta). 150Gd,151Tb deduced
levels,J,pi,superdeformed band structure,shapes,moments of inertia.
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A special "BibTex" format is available, for those who want to export NSR entries into a
LaTex bibliography. It is important to note that the translation into this format is
imperfect, and users should be careful to check and edit the entries as needed before using
them. Keyword abstracts are not included. This is an example of the above entry in "BibTex" form:
@article(1989FA02,
author="P. {Fallon} and P. {Alderson} and M.A. {Bentley} and A.M. {Bruce} and P.D. {Forsyth} and
D. {Howe} and J.W. {Roberts} and J.F. {Sharpey-Schafer} and P.J. {Twin} and F.A. {Beck} and
T. {Byrski} and D. {Curien} and C. {Schuck}",
title="Superdeformed Bands in $^{150}$Gd and $^{151}$Tb: Evidence for the influence of high-N
intruder states at large deformations",
journal="Phys.Lett.",
year=1989,
volume="218B",
pages="137")
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All NSR output formats are generated from the "exchange" format, which contains a few additional fields
and looks like the following:
<KEYNO >1989FA02
<HISTORY >A19890512 M19920619
<CODEN >JOUR PYLBB 218 137
<REFRENCE>Phys.Lett. 218B, 137 (1989)
<AUTHORS >P.Fallon, P.Alderson, M.A.Bentley, A.M.Bruce, P.D.Forsyth, D.Howe, J.W
.Roberts, J.F.Sharpey-Schafer, P.J.Twin, F.A.Beck, T.Byrski, D.Curien, C.Schuck
<TITLE >Superdeformed Bands in {+150}Gd and {+151}Tb: Evidence for the influen
ce of high-N intruder states at large deformations
<KEYWORDS>NUCLEAR REACTIONS {+130}Te({+26}Mg,6n),E=145 MeV; {+130}Te({+27}Al,6n)
,E=150 MeV; measured |g|g-coin,|g|g(|q). {+150}Gd,{+151}Tb deduced levels,J,|p,s
uperdeformed band structure,shapes,moments of inertia.
<SELECTRS>T:130TE;A. R:(26MG,6N);A. N:150GD;A. T:130TE;B. R:(27AL,6N);B. N:151TB
;B. M:G-SPECTRA;A. M:G-SPECTRA;B. N:150GD;C. N:151TB;C. D:LEVEL-PROP;C. D:SUP-DE
F;C.
<DOI >10.1016/0370-2693(89)91408-1
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Each line in the exchange format has a fixed length of 80 characters, and the different
parts of the entry are separated with tags such as <AUTHORS >. The <HISTORY >
field indicates that this entry was added to NSR on May 12, 1989, and last modified on
June 19, 1992. The <SELECTRS> field is generated from the keywords, and contains
most of the indexed quantities used for searching.
Each element in the selector field consists of a type ("T" for target, "N" for nuclide, etc.),
followed by a value ("130TE", "SUP-DEF"), followed by a "link variable".
The link variables are used to distinguish between sections of the keywords
in boolean searches. For example, a search on "Nuclide=150Gd AND Reaction=(26MG,6N)"
would retrieve the above reference, while "Nuclide=151Tb AND Reaction=(26MG,6N)"
would not, because 151Tb is associated with link variable "B" and (26MG,6N) is
associated with link variable "A".
The DOI field contains publisher-supplied "digital object identifier" information that
allows the construction of a web link to the article.
In general, articles are included in NSR if they include measured, calculated, or
deduced quantitative nuclear structure or reaction data. Papers that apply previously
known data are generally not included. Examples of this include neutron activation
analysis using known cross sections or radiological dating using known half-lives.
NSR has been in existence for several decades, in various forms. Originally, the
focus of the database was on papers related to low-energy nuclear structure
studies. Over time, the scope has widened to include more reaction and
high-energy references. As a result, some older references may not be included
in NSR, even if more current papers covering similar data are included.
As a rule, an effort is made to enter all new primary references that fall within
the database scope. In order to avoid undue duplication, not all secondary
references (reports, conferences, etc) are entered.
Questions or comments should be directed to nsr@bnl.gov
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