Search results for "Heavy element"
showing 10 items of 67 documents
Superheavy-element research
1979
The existence of an island of relatively stable elements beyond the present Periodic Table has been predicted by theoretical extrapolations of nuclear properties. During the past 12 years vigorous efforts have been made to discover these superheavy elements in nature and to produce them by nuclear reactions.
Novel Techniques for Constraining Neutron-capture Rates relevant to Heavy-element Nucleosynthesis
2017
In this contribution we discuss new experimental approaches to indirectly provide information on neutron-capture rates relevant to the $r$-process. In particular, we focus on applications of the Oslo method to extract fundamental nuclear properties for reaction-rate calculations: the nuclear level density and the $\gamma$ strength function. Two methods are discussed in detail, the Oslo method in inverse kinematics and the beta-Oslo method. These methods present a first step towards constraining neutron-capture rates of importance to the $r$-process.
Recent Results from Heavy Element Research at JYFL
2002
Search for Superheavy Elements — A Status Report
1986
A survey is given of nuclear and chemical properties in the predicted island of spherical superheavy nuclei around element 114 and of recent attempts to produce such nuclei by transfer and fusion reactions.
From nuclear halos to superheavy nuclei—Perspectives for nuclear structure research at GSI
1998
Of fundamental interest is the investigation of nuclear matter at the limits of its existence in the vicinity of the driplines and in the region of the superheavy elements. The availability of unstable nuclei over large energy ranges and new experimental developments gave new impulse to nuclear structure research. Examples are the investigations of halo nuclei by nuclear decay studies combined with reactions at low and high energies, the mapping of the mass surface in large-scale direct mass measurements, and the production of heavy and superheavy nuclei. New developments such as high-current accelerators or the next generation of radioactive beam facilities will lead to further progress in…
Studying Chemical Properties of the Heaviest Elements: One Atom at a Time
2017
The search for heavier elements has been an exciting endeavor for nuclear scientists for many decades. This was invigorated after the first predictions that nuclear shell effects might render superheavy elements to have lifetimes long enough for their experimental study, or even their occurrence in Nature. A fascinating aspect concerns the question of their chemical properties: will they conform to the well-established structure of the Periodic Table of the Elements, or will so-called relativistic effects—a result of the high velocities of electrons in the vicinity of highly-charged nuclei—lead to dramatic deviations? Chemical studies of the heaviest elements are complicated by small produc…
Search for long-lived superheavy elements in the reaction of136Xe with238U
1978
A search with radiochemical methods for long-lived superheavy elements in 238U targets bombarded with intense beams of136Xe ions produced negative results. A formation cross section of ≤1×10−35 cm2 is deduced at 95% confidence level for nuclides with half-lives between 1 and 200 d.
Cold fusion of heavy ions paving the way to superheavy elements
2001
Abstract Significant progress has been made approaching superheavy elements. A shell-stabilized region near hassium has been discovered. Element 112 has been synthesized. Recently evidence for the creation of elements 114, 116, and 118 has been reported. The way to these superheavy nuclei was paved by the cold fusion of heavy ions. In this paper experimental methods for heavy-element research, which is essentially physics with single atoms, are presented together with recent experimental results. The observed nuclear properties are discussed in the framework of theoretical models. New instrumental developments including accelerators and radioactive beams are be addressed.
Search for Superheavy Elements in theU238+U238Reaction
1980
A search was made for spontaneously fissioning superheavy elements in damped collisions of two uranium nuclei. Different techniques were applied covering the elements 108 to 118 and approx. =126, and a half-life range from 1 ms to more than 1 yr. No evidence for superheavy elements was found at upper cross-section limits of 10/sup -32/, 10/sup -33/, and 10/sup -35/ cm/sup 2/ for half-lives from 1 to 100 ms, 100 ms to 1 d, and 1 d to 1 yr, respectively.