Recent developments in Penning-trap mass spectrometry

Penning-trap mass spectrometry provides atomic masses with the highest precision. At accelerator-based on-line facilities it is applied to investigate exotic radionuclides in the context of tests of fundamental symmetries, nuclear structure studies, and nuclear astrophysics research. Recent progress in slowing down radioactive ion-beams in buffer-gas cells in combination with advanced ion-manipulation techniques has paved the way to reach nuclides ever-more far from stability. In this endeavor many efforts are underway to increase the sensitivity, the efficiency, and the precision of Penning-trap mass spectrometry. In this article some recent experimental developments are addressed with the focus on the phase-imaging ion-cyclotron-resonance technique and the Fourier transform ion-cyclotron-resonance technique.