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In two recent papers by Pore et al. and Khuyagbaatar et al., discovery of the new isotope Md244 was reported. The decay data, however, are conflicting. While Pore et al. report two isomeric states decaying by α emission with Eα(1)=8.66(2) MeV, T1/2(1)=0.4-0.1+0.4 s and Eα(2)=8.31(2) MeV, T1/2(2)≈6 s, Khuyagbaatar et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 142504 (2020).PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.125.142504] report only a single transition with a broad energy distribution of Eα=(8.73-8.86) MeV and T1/2=0.30-0.09+0.19 s. The data published in Pore et al. are very similar to those published for Md245m [Eα=8.64(2), 8.68(2) MeV, T1/2=0.35-0.16+0.23 s [V. Ninov, F. P. Heßberger, S. Hofmann, H. Folger, G. Münzenberg, P. Armbruster, A. V. Yeremin, A. G. Popeko, M. Leino, and S. Saro, Z. Phys. A 356, 11 (1996).ZPAHEX0939-792210.1007/s002180050141]]. Therefore, we compare the data presented for Md244 in Pore et al. with those reported for Md245 in Ninov et al. and also in Khuyagbaatar et al. We conclude that the data presented in Pore et al. shall be attributed to Md245 with small contributions (one event each) from Fm245 and probably Md246.
The α decay of 188,192Po has been reexamined in order to probe the 0+ states in the daughter nuclei 184,188Pb that can be associated with coexisting spherical, oblate, and∕or prolate configurations. Improved values were measured for the excitation energy and the feeding α-decay intensity of the 0+2state in 184,188Pb and conflicting results on the 0+3 state in 188Pb were clarified. All known cases of fine structure in the α decay of the even-even Po nuclei are reviewed. The reduced α-decay width systematics combined with potential-energy-surface calculations confirm the onset of deformation in the ground state of the polonium nuclei around the neutron midshell. An isomeric state with a half-life of 580(100)ns has been identified in 192Po.
The decay of excited states in 255No was investigated by applying the evaporation-residue–conversion-electron correlation technique. Two new isomeric states were observed in 255No together with the previously known one. Excitation energies of the isomeric states were estimated based on the energies of conversion electrons and γ rays from correlation chains. These results were in accord with theoretical calculations based on the mean-field models. A tentative decay scheme of isomeric states in 255No is proposed, and their Nilsson configurations are discussed. The energy decrease of the 11/2−[725] Nilsson level for heavy N=153 isotones as a function of increasing proton number is confirmed.
An experimental scheme combining the mass resolving power of a Penning trap with contemporary decay spectroscopy has been established at GSI Darmstadt. The Universal Linear Accelerator (UNILAC) at GSI Darmstadt provided a 48Ca beam impinging on a thin 170Er target foil. Subsequent to velocity filtering of reaction products in the Separator for Heavy Ion reaction Products (SHIP), the nuclear ground state of the 5n evaporation channel 213Ra was mass-selected in SHIPTRAP, and the 213Ra ions were finally transferred into an array of silicon strip detectors surrounded by large composite germanium detectors. Based on comprehensive geant4 simulations and supported by theoretical calculations, the spectroscopic results call for a revision of the decay path of 213Ra, thereby exemplifying the potential of a combination of a mass-selective Penning trap device with a dedicated nuclear decay station and contemporary geant4 simulations.
We report here experimental attempts to determine the sign of the electric dipole moment (relative to the electric octupole moment) in the octupole deformed nucleus 226Ra. Sensitivity to this quantity is observed in the measured yields of γ-ray transitions following very low energy Coulomb excitation. Recent progress is also reported in the development of new spectroscopic techniques that promise to elucidate the structure of deformed superheavy nuclei in the region of 254No. The 4+ → 2+ transition in 254No, as well as higher spin transitions, has been identified using recoil-tagged conversion electron spectroscopy.
The results for nuclei above curium, produced in multi-nucleon transfer reactions of 48Ca + 248Cm at the velocity filter SHIP of GSI Darmstadt, are presented. Spontaneous fission and α-activities have been used to study the population of nuclei with lifetimes ranging from few milliseconds to several days. We observed several, relatively neutron-rich isotopes with atomic numbers Z≥98; among them a weak 224 millisecond activity which we tentatively attributed to 260No. The measured cross-sections of the observed nuclei give hope that multi-nucleon transfer reactions are a way to reach new neutron-rich heavy and superheavy nuclei, which are not accessible in other reactions. We compare our results with data from earlier experiments and discuss limitations and future perspectives of the method.
The electron-capture decay followed by a prompt fission process was searched for in the hitherto unknown most neutron-deficient Md isotope with mass number 244. Alpha decay with α-particle energies of 8.73–8.86 MeV and with a half-life of 0.30+0.19−0.09 s was assigned to 244Md. No fission event with a similar half-life potentially originating from spontaneous fissioning of the short-lived electron-capture decay daughter 244Fm was observed, which results in an upper limit of 0.14 for the electron-capture branching of 244Md. Two groups of fission events with half-lives of 0.9+0.6−0.3 ms and 5+3−2 ms were observed. The 0.9+0.6−0.3 ms activity was assigned to originate from the decay of 245Md. The origin of eight fission events resulting in a half-life of 5+3−2 ms could not be unambiguously identified within the present data while the possible explanation has to invoke previously unseen physics cases.
Decay spectroscopy of 250No has been performed using digital electronics and pulse-shape analysis of the fast nuclear decays for the first time. Previous studies of 250No reported two distinct fission decay lifetimes, related to the direct fission of the ground state and to the decay of an isomeric state but without the possibility to determine if the isomeric state decayed directly via fission or via internal electromagnetic transitions to the ground state. The data obtained in the current experiment allowed the puzzle to finally be resolved, attributing the shorter half-life of t1/2 = 3.8 ± 0.3 μs to the ground state and the longer half-life t1/2 = 34.9+3.9 −3.2 μs to the decay of an isomeric state. 250No becomes, thus, one of a very few examples of very heavy nuclei with an isomeric state living considerably longer than its ground state. This phenomenon has important consequences for the nuclear-structure models aiming to determine the borders of the island of stability of superheavy elements.
The spectrum of prompt conversion electrons emitted by excited 254No nuclei has been measured, revealing discrete lines arising from transitions within the ground state band. A striking feature is a broad distribution that peaks near 100 keV and comprises high multiplicity electron cascades, probably originating from M1 transitions within rotational bands built on high K states. Evidence for the existence of isomeric states in 254No is presented.
The fission process still remains a main factor that determines the stability of the atomic nucleus of heaviest elements. Fission half-lives vary over a wide range, 10−19−1024 s. Present experimental techniques for the synthesis of the superheavy elements that usually measure -decay chains are sensitive only in a limited range of half-lives, often 10−5−103 s. In the past years, measurement techniques for very short-lived and very longlived nuclei were significantly improved at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA at GSI Darmstadt. Recently, several experimental studies of fissionrelated phenomena have successfully been performed. In this paper, results on 254−256Rf and 266Lr are presented and corresponding factors for retarding the fission process are discussed.
Nihonium (Nh, element 113) and flerovium (Fl, element 114) are the first superheavy elements in which the 7p shell is occupied. High volatility and inertness were predicted for Fl due to the strong relativistic stabilization of the closed 7p1/2 sub-shell, which originates from a large spin-orbit splitting between the 7p1/2 and 7p3/2 orbitals. One unpaired electron in the outermost 7p1/2 sub-shell in Nh is expected to give rise to a higher chemical reactivity. Theoretical predictions of Nh reactivity are discussed, along with results of the first experimental attempts to study Nh chemistry in the gas phase. The experimental observations verify a higher chemical reactivity of Nh atoms compared to its neighbor Fl and call for the development of advanced setups. First tests of a newly developed detection device miniCOMPACT with highly reactive Fr isotopes assure that effective chemical studies of Nh are within reach.
Flerovium (Fl, element 114) is the heaviest element chemically studied so far. To date, its interaction with gold was investigated in two gas-solid chromatography experiments, which reported two different types of interaction, however, each based on the level of a few registered atoms only. Whereas noble-gas-like properties were suggested from the first experiment, the second one pointed at a volatile-metal-like character. Here, we present further experimental data on adsorption studies of Fl on silicon oxide and gold surfaces, accounting for the inhomogeneous nature of the surface, as it was used in the experiment and analyzed as part of the reported studies. We confirm that Fl is highly volatile and the least reactive member of group 14. Our experimental observations suggest that Fl exhibits lower reactivity towards Au than the volatile metal Hg, but higher reactivity than the noble gas Rn.
By using the technique of correlating implanted evaporation residues and their subsequent fission decay, β-delayed fission (βDF) of 186Bi has been identified for the first time and βDF of 188Bi has been unambiguously confirmed. The experiments were performed at the velocity filter SHIP (GSI, Darmstadt). The βDF probabilities for both nuclides were qualitatively estimated, and, in particular indications for a large value in the case of 186Bi are regarded.
The isotopic distribution of nuclei produced in the 50Ti + 249Cf reaction has been studied at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA at GSI Darmstadt, which separates ions according to differences in magnetic rigidity. The bombardment was performed at an energy around the Bass barrier and with the TASCA magnetic fields set for collecting fusion-evaporation reaction products. Fifty-three isotopes located “north-east” of 208Pb were identified as recoiling products formed in non-fusion channels of the reaction. These recoils were implanted with energies in two distinct ranges; besides one with higher energy, a significant low-energy contribution was identified. The latter observation was not expected to occur according to kinematics of the known types of reactions, namely quasi-elastic, multi-nucleon transfer, deep-inelastic collisions or quasifission. The present observations are discussed within the framework of two-body kinematics passing through the formation of a composite system.
A search for production of the superheavy elements with atomic numbers 119 and 120 was performed in the 50Ti+249Bk and 50Ti+249Cf fusion-evaporation reactions, respectively, at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA at GSI Darmstadt, Germany. Over four months of irradiation, the 249Bk target partially decayed into 249Cf, which allowed for a simultaneous search for both elements. Neither was detected at cross-section sensitivity levels of 65 and 200 fb for the 50Ti+249Bk and 50Ti+249Cf reactions, respectively, at a midtarget beam energy of Elab=281.5 MeV. The nonobservation of elements 119 and 120 is discussed within the concept of fusion-evaporation reactions including various theoretical predictions on the fission-barrier heights of superheavy nuclei in the region of the island of stability.
The new neutron-deficient nuclei 240Es and 236Bk were synthesised at the gas-filled recoil separator RITU. They were identified by their radioactive decay chains starting from 240Es produced in the fusion–evaporation reaction 209Bi(34S,3n)240Es. Half-lives of 6(2) sand 22+13−6swere obtained for 240Es and 236Bk, respectively. Two groups of αparticles with energies Eα=8.19(3) MeVand 8.09(3) MeVwere unambiguously assigned to 240Es. Electron-capture delayed fission branches with probabilities of 0.16(6)and 0.04(2)were measured for 240Es and 236Bk, respectively. These new data show a continuation of the exponential increase of ECDF probabilities in more neutron-deficient isotopes.
An in-beam study of excited states in the transfermium nucleus 252 No has been performed using the recoil separator RITU together with the JUROSPHERE II array at the University of Jyväskylä. This is the second transfermium nucleus studied in an in-beam experiment. Levels up to spin 20 were populated and compared to levels in 254 No . An upbend is seen at a frequency of 200 keV/ħ corresponding to spin 16. We also use an improved systematics to connect the energy of the lowest 2 + state with its half-life and find that the deformation of both 2 5 2 , 2 5 4 No is slightly larger than previously assumed.
The heaviest currently known nuclei, which have up to 118 protons, have been produced in 48Ca induced reactions with actinide targets. Among them, the element tennessine (Ts), which has 117 protons, has been synthesized by fusing 48Ca with the radioactive target 249Bk, which has a half-life of 327 d. The experiment was performed at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA. Two long and two short α decay chains were observed. The long chains were attributed to the decay of 294Ts. The possible origin of the short-decay chains is discussed in comparison with the known experimental data. They are found to fit with the decay chain patterns attributed to 293Ts. The present experimental results confirm the previous findings at the Dubna Gas-Filled Recoil Separator on the decay chains originating from the nuclei assigned to Ts.
[Introduction] The superheavy element with atomic number Z ¼ 117 was produced as an evaporation residue in the 48 Ca þ 249 Bk fusion reaction at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA at GSI Darmstadt, Germany. The radioactive decay of evaporation residues and their α -decay products was studied using a detection setup that allowed measuring decays of single atomic nuclei with half-lives between sub- μ s and a few days. Two decay chains comprising seven α decays and a spontaneous fission each were identified and are assigned to the isotope 294 117 and its decay products. A hitherto unknown α -decay branch in 270 Db ( Z ¼ 105 ) was observed, which populated the new isotope 266 Lr ( Z ¼ 103 ). The identification of the long-lived ( T 1 = 2 ¼ 1 . 0 þ 1 . 9 − 0 . 4 h) α -emitter 270 Db marks an important step towards the observation of even more long-lived nuclei of superheavy elements located on an “ island of stability. ”
The rotational structure of 246Fm has been investigated using in-beam γ -ray spectroscopic techniques. The experiment was performed using the JUROGAMII germanium detector array coupled to the gas-filled recoil ion transport unit (RITU) and the gamma recoil electron alpha tagging (GREAT) focal plane detection system. Nuclei of 246Fm were produced using a 186 MeV beam of 40Ar impinging on a 208Pb target. The JUROGAMII array was fully instrumented with Tracking Numerical Treatment 2 Dubna (TNT2D) digital acquisition cards. The use of digital electronics and a rotating target allowed for unprecedented beam intensities of up to 71 particle-nanoamperes for prompt γ -ray spectroscopy at a level of approximately 11 nb. With all these major experimental advances a rotational band is observed in 246Fm.
The rotational band structure of the Z ¼ 104 nucleus 256Rf has been observed up to a tentative spin of 20@ using state-of-the-art -ray spectroscopic techniques. This represents the first such measurement in a superheavy nucleus whose stability is entirely derived from the shell-correction energy. The observed rotational properties are compared to those of neighboring nuclei and it is shown that the kinematic and dynamic moments of inertia are sensitive to the underlying single-particle shell structure and the specific location of high-j orbitals. The moments of inertia therefore provide a sensitive test of shell structure and pairing in superheavy nuclei which is essential to ensure the validity of contemporary nuclear models in this mass region. The data obtained show that there is no deformed shell gap at Z ¼ 104, which is predicted in a number of current self-consistent mean-field models.