0000000000016764
AUTHOR
J. Walshe
showing 6 related works from this author
Zeptosecond contact times for element Z=120 synthesis
2020
The synthesis of new superheavy elements beyond oganesson (Z=118) requires fusion reactions with projectile nuclei with proton numbers larger than that of $^{48}$Ca (Z=20), which has been successfully employed for the synthesis of elements with Z=112-118. In such reactions, fusion is drastically hindered by fast non-equilibrated dynamical processes. Attempts to produce nuclei with Z=120 using the $^{64}$Ni+$^{238}$U, $^{58}$Fe+$^{244}$Pu, $^{54}$Cr+$^{248}$Cm, and $^{50}$Ti+$^{249}$Cf reactions have been made, which all result in larger Coulomb forces than for $^{48}$Ca-induced reactions, but no discovery has been confirmed to date. In this work, mass and angle distributions of fission frag…
Nuclear structure dependence of fusion hindrance in heavy element synthesis
2018
The production of the heaviest elements in fusion-evaporation reactions is substantially limited by very low cross sections, as fusion cross sections (including fusion-fission) are greatly reduced by the competing quasifission mechanism. Using the Australian National University Heavy Ion Accelerator Facility and CUBE detector array, fission fragments from the $^{48}\mathrm{Ti}+^{204,208}\mathrm{Pb}$ and $^{50}\mathrm{Ti}+^{206,208}\mathrm{Pb}$ reactions have been measured, with the aim to investigate how the competition between quasifission and fusion-fission evolves with small changes in entrance-channel properties associated mainly with the nuclear structure. Analysis of mass-distribution…
Quasifission in heavy and superheavy element formation reactions
2016
Superheavy elements are created in the laboratory by the fusion of two heavy nuclei. The large Coulomb repulsion that makes superheavy elements decay also makes the fusion process that forms them very unlikely. Instead, after sticking together for a short time, the two nuclei usually come apart, in a process called quasifission. Mass-angle distributions give the most direct information on the characteristics and time scales of quasifission. A systematic study of carefully chosen mass-angle distributions has provided information on the global trends of quasifission. Large deviations from these systematics reveal the major role played by the nuclear structure of the two colliding nuclei in de…
In-beam γ -ray spectroscopy of the neutron-rich platinum isotope Pt200 toward the N=126 shell gap
2017
The neutron-rich nucleus \nucleus{200}{Pt} is investigated via in-beam \gamma-ray spectroscopy in order to study the shape evolution in the neutron-rich platinum isotopes towards the N = 126 shell closure. The two-neutron transfer reaction \nucleus{198}{Pt}(\nucleus{82}{Se}, \nucleus{80}{Se})\nucleus{200}{Pt} is used to populate excited states of \nucleus{200}{Pt}. The Advanced Gamma Ray Tracking Array (AGATA) demonstrator coupled with the PRISMA spectrometer detects \gamma rays coincident with the \nucleus{80}{Se} recoils, the binary partner of \nucleus{200}{Pt}. The binary partner method is applied to extract the \gamma-ray transitions and build the level scheme of \nucleus{200}{Pt}. The …
Mechanisms Suppressing Superheavy Element Yields in Cold Fusion Reactions.
2019
Superheavy elements are formed in fusion reactions which are hindered by fast nonequilibrium processes. To quantify these, mass-angle distributions and cross sections have been measured, at beam energies from below-barrier to 25% above, for the reactions of $^{48}\mathrm{Ca}$, $^{50}\mathrm{Ti}$, and $^{54}\mathrm{Cr}$ with $^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$. Moving from $^{48}\mathrm{Ca}$ to $^{54}\mathrm{Cr}$ leads to a drastic fall in the symmetric fission yield, which is reflected in the measured mass-angle distribution by the presence of competing fast nonequilibrium deep inelastic and quasifission processes. These are responsible for reduction of the compound nucleus formation probablity ${P}_{CN}$ …
Sensitive search for near-symmetric and super-asymmetric fusion-fission of the superheavy element Flerovium (Z=114)
2021
Physics letters / B 820, 136601 (2021). doi:10.1016/j.physletb.2021.136601