Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”

Roberto, James B.; Rykaczewski, Krzysztof Piotr

doi:10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658

Title: Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”

Abstract

Element 117 (tennessine) joined the periodic table in November 2016. Two tennessine isotopes were synthesized by bombarding ²⁴⁹Bk from Oak Ridge National Laboratory with ⁴⁸Ca ions at the Joint Institute of Nuclear Research, Russia, and 11 new heaviest isotopes of odd-Z elements were observed in subsequent decay chains. These isotopes exhibit increasing lifetimes as the closed nuclear shell at neutron number N = 184 is approached, providing evidence for the “island of stability” for super-heavy elements. Here, this article summarizes recent super-heavy element research with a focus on element 117, the role of actinide targets, and opportunities to synthesize elements 119 and 120.

Authors:

^[1];

^[1]

Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Publication Date:: Wed Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 2017

Research Org.:: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: USDOE

Contributing Org.:: Actinide; berkelium; separations chemistry; super-heavy element; tennessine

OSTI Identifier:: 1408011

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

Resource Type:: Accepted Manuscript

Journal Name:: Separation Science and Technology

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 52; Journal Issue: 10; Journal ID: ISSN 0149-6395

Publisher:: Taylor & Francis

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY; 07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES; Actinide; berkelium; separations chemistry; super-heavy element; tennessine

Citation Formats


                    Roberto, James B., and Rykaczewski, Krzysztof Piotr. Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”.  United States: N. p., 2017. 
Web.  doi:10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658.

Copy to clipboard


                    Roberto, James B., & Rykaczewski, Krzysztof Piotr. Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658

Copy to clipboard


                    Roberto, James B., and Rykaczewski, Krzysztof Piotr. Wed .  
"Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658.  https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1408011.

Copy to clipboard


                    
@article{osti_1408011,

  title        = {Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”},

  author       = {Roberto, James B. and Rykaczewski, Krzysztof Piotr},

  abstractNote = {Element 117 (tennessine) joined the periodic table in November 2016. Two tennessine isotopes were synthesized by bombarding 249Bk from Oak Ridge National Laboratory with 48Ca ions at the Joint Institute of Nuclear Research, Russia, and 11 new heaviest isotopes of odd-Z elements were observed in subsequent decay chains. These isotopes exhibit increasing lifetimes as the closed nuclear shell at neutron number N = 184 is approached, providing evidence for the “island of stability” for super-heavy elements. Here, this article summarizes recent super-heavy element research with a focus on element 117, the role of actinide targets, and opportunities to synthesize elements 119 and 120.},

  doi          = {10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658},

  journal      = {Separation Science and Technology},

  number       = 10,

  volume       = 52,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Wed Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 2017},

  month        = {Wed Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 2017}

}

Copy to clipboard

Journal Article:

Free Publicly Available Full Text

Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Publisher's Version of Record

https://doi.org/10.1080/01496395.2017.1290658

Other availability

Search WorldCat to find libraries that may hold this journal

Citation Metrics:

Cited by: 8 works

Citation information provided by
Web of Science

Save / Share:

Export Metadata

Save to My Library

Works referenced in this record:

Fission barriers and probabilities of spontaneous fission for elements with Z≥ 100
journal, December 2015

Baran, A.; Kowal, M.; Reinhard, P. -G.
Nuclear Physics A, Vol. 944
DOI: 10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2015.06.002

Synthesis of the isotopes of elements 118 and 116 in the ${}^{249}{Cf}$ and ${}^{245}{Cm} + {}^{48}{Ca}$ fusion reactions
journal, October 2006

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Utyonkov, V. K.; Lobanov, Yu. V.
Physical Review C, Vol. 74, Issue 4
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.74.044602

Heaviest nuclei from ⁴⁸ Ca-induced reactions
journal, March 2007

Oganessian, Yuri
Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physics, Vol. 34, Issue 4
DOI: 10.1088/0954-3899/34/4/R01

Experiments on the synthesis of element 115 in the reaction ${}^{243}{Am} ({}^{48}{Ca}, x n) {}^{291 - x}115$
journal, February 2004

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Utyonkoy, V. K.; Lobanov, Yu. V.
Physical Review C, Vol. 69, Issue 2
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.69.021601

Spectroscopy of Element 115 Decay Chains
journal, September 2013

Rudolph, D.; Forsberg, U.; Golubev, P.
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 111, Issue 11
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.112502

${}^{48}{Ca} + {}^{249}{Bk}$ Fusion Reaction Leading to Element $Z = 117$ : Long-Lived $α$ -Decaying ${}^{270}{Db}$ and Discovery of ${}^{266}{Lr}$
journal, May 2014

Khuyagbaatar, J.; Yakushev, A.; Düllmann, Ch. E.
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 112, Issue 17
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.172501

Experiment on the Synthesis of Element 113 in the Reaction ²⁰⁹ Bi( ⁷⁰ Zn,n) ²⁷⁸ 113
journal, October 2004

Morita, Kosuke; Morimoto, Kouji; Kaji, Daiya
Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, Vol. 73, Issue 10
DOI: 10.1143/JPSJ.73.2593

Independent Verification of Element 114 Production in the ${}^{48}{Ca} + {}^{242}{Pu}$ Reaction
journal, September 2009

Stavsetra, L.; Gregorich, K. E.; Dvorak, J.
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 103, Issue 13
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.103.132502

Synthesis of superheavy nuclei in the $^{48} Ca +^{244} Pu$ reaction: $^{288} 114$
journal, September 2000

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Utyonkov, V. K.; Lobanov, Yu. V.
Physical Review C, Vol. 62, Issue 4
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.62.041604

Synthesis of a New Element with Atomic Number $Z = 117$
journal, April 2010

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Abdullin, F. Sh.; Bailey, P. D.
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 104, Issue 14
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.142502

Experiments on the synthesis of superheavy nuclei ${}^{284}{Fl}$ and ${}^{285}{Fl}$ in the ${}^{239, 240}{Pu} + {}^{48}{Ca}$ reactions
journal, September 2015

Utyonkov, V. K.; Brewer, N. T.; Oganessian, Yu. Ts.
Physical Review C, Vol. 92, Issue 3
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.92.034609

New results on elements 111 and 112
journal, June 2002

Hofmann, S.; Heßberger, F. P.; Ackermann, D.
The European Physical Journal A, Vol. 14, Issue 2
DOI: 10.1140/epja/i2001-10119-x

Measurements of cross sections for the fusion-evaporation reactions ${}^{244}{Pu} {({}^{48}{Ca}, x n)}^{292 - x} 114$ and ${}^{245}{Cm} {({}^{48}{Ca}, x n)}^{293 - x} 116$
journal, May 2004

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Utyonkov, V. K.; Lobanov, Yu. V.
Physical Review C, Vol. 69, Issue 5
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.69.054607

Production and Decay of the Heaviest Nuclei ${}^{293, 294}1 17$ and ${}^{294}1 18$
journal, October 2012

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Abdullin, F. Sh.; Alexander, C.
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 109, Issue 16
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.162501

Actinide targets for the synthesis of super-heavy elements
journal, December 2015

Roberto, J. B.; Alexander, C. W.; Boll, R. A.
Nuclear Physics A, Vol. 944
DOI: 10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2015.06.009

Superheavy nuclei from 48Ca-induced reactions
journal, December 2015

Oganessian, Yu. Ts.; Utyonkov, V. K.
Nuclear Physics A, Vol. 944
DOI: 10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2015.07.003

Decay spectroscopy of element 115 daughters: ${}^{280}{Rg} \to {}^{276}{Mt}$ and ${}^{276}{Mt} \to {}^{272}{Bh}$
journal, August 2015

Gates, J. M.; Gregorich, K. E.; Gothe, O. R.
Physical Review C, Vol. 92, Issue 2
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.92.021301

The reaction 48Ca + 248Cm → 296116* studied at the GSI-SHIP
journal, May 2012

Hofmann, S.; Heinz, S.; Mann, R.
The European Physical Journal A, Vol. 48, Issue 5
DOI: 10.1140/epja/i2012-12062-1

Names and symbols of the elements with atomic numbers 113, 115, 117 and 118 (IUPAC Recommendations 2016)
journal, December 2016

Öhrström, Lars; Reedijk, Jan
Pure and Applied Chemistry, Vol. 88, Issue 12
DOI: 10.1515/pac-2016-0501

Similar Records in DOE PAGES and OSTI.GOV collections:

Fusion reaction ⁴⁸Ca+²⁴⁹Bk leading to formation of the element Ts (Z = 117)

Journal Article Khuyagbaatar, J. ; Yakushev, A. ; Düllmann, Ch. E. ; ... - Physical Review C

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. In this work, 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 aremore »« less
Cited by 18
https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevc.99.054306

Full Text Available
Application of a Dual-Column Method to Selectively Extract and Purify Berkelium-249 from Other Actinides and Impurities

Technical Report Du, Miting ; Tan, Ryan ; Boll, Rose

The super heavy element (SHE) Tennessine (Ts, Element 117) was discovered in 2016 a collaboration of US and Russian scientists vis bombardment reaction of ²⁴⁹Bk + ⁴⁸Camore »« less
https://doi.org/10.2172/1675053

Full Text Available
Actinide targets for the synthesis of super-heavy elements

Journal Article Roberto, J. ; Alexander, Charles W. ; Boll, Rose Ann ; ... - Nuclear Physics. A

Since 2000, six new super-heavy elements with atomic numbers 113 through 118 have been synthesized in hot fusion reactions of 48Ca beams on actinide targets. These target materials, including ²⁴²Pu, ²⁴⁴Pu, ²⁴³Am, ²⁴⁵Cm, ²⁴⁸Cm, ²⁴⁹Cf, and ²⁴⁹Bk, are available in very limited quantities and require specialized production and processing facilities resident in only a few research centers worldwide. This report describes the production and chemical processing of heavy actinide materials for super-heavy element research, current availabilities of these materials, and related target fabrication techniques. The impact of actinide materials in super-heavy element discovery is reviewed, and strategies for enhancing themore »« less
Cited by 72
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2015.06.009

Full Text Available
Eleven new heaviest isotopes of elements Z=105 to Z=117 identified among the products of {sup 249}Bk+{sup 48}Ca reactions

Journal Article Oganessian, Yu Ts ; Abdullin, F Sh ; Dmitriev, S N ; ... - Physical Review. C, Nuclear Physics

The heaviest isotopes of elements Z=117 to Z=105, {sup 294}117, {sup 293}117, {sup 290}115, {sup 289}115, {sup 286}113, {sup 285}113, {sup 282}Rg, {sup 281}Rg, {sup 278}Mt, {sup 274}Bh, and {sup 270}Db, were identified by means of the Dubna gas-filled recoil separator among the products of the {sup 249}Bk + {sup 48}Ca reaction. The details of the observed six decay chains, indicating the production and decay of isotopes {sup 293}117 and {sup 294}117, are presented and discussed. The decay energies and resulting half-lives of these new nuclei show a strong rise of stability with increasing neutron number, validating the concept ofmore »« less
https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVC.83.054315
Optimal reaction for synthesis of superheavy element 117

Journal Article Liu, Z H ; Jingdong, Bao ; Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics China, CAS, Beijing 100190 ; ... - Physical Review. C, Nuclear Physics

Fusion reactions leading to the formation of superheavy element 117 are systematically analyzed. Among the reactions considered, the {sup 250}Bk({sup 48}Ca,4n){sup 294}117 reaction has the largest evaporation residue (ER) cross section of about 2 pb. However, this reaction is hard to realize experimentally because it is difficult to accumulate sufficient amount of target material due to the short lifetime of {sup 250}Bk nucleus. For the reaction {sup 48}Ca+{sup 249}Bk, our estimation shows that the ER cross sections in 3n and 4n channels may be expected to be greater than 1 pb. Therefore, {sup 48}Ca and {sup 249}Bk should be themore »« less
https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVC.80.034601

Similar Records

Title: Discovery of element 117: Super-heavy elements and the “island of stability”

Abstract

Citation Formats

Fission barriers and probabilities of spontaneous fission for elements with Z≥ 100 journal, December 2015

Synthesis of the isotopes of elements 118 and 116 in the Cf 249 and Cm 245 + Ca 48 fusion reactions journal, October 2006

Heaviest nuclei from 48 Ca-induced reactions journal, March 2007

Experiments on the synthesis of element 115 in the reaction Am 243 ( Ca 48 , x n ) 115 291 − x journal, February 2004

Spectroscopy of Element 115 Decay Chains journal, September 2013

Ca 48 + Bk 249 Fusion Reaction Leading to Element Z = 117 : Long-Lived α -Decaying Db 270 and Discovery of Lr 266 journal, May 2014

Experiment on the Synthesis of Element 113 in the Reaction 209 Bi( 70 Zn,n) 278 113 journal, October 2004

Independent Verification of Element 114 Production in the Ca 48 + Pu 242 Reaction journal, September 2009

Synthesis of superheavy nuclei in the 48 Ca + 244 Pu reaction: 288 114 journal, September 2000

Synthesis of a New Element with Atomic Number Z = 117 journal, April 2010

Experiments on the synthesis of superheavy nuclei Fl 284 and Fl 285 in the Pu 239 , 240 + Ca 48 reactions journal, September 2015

New results on elements 111 and 112 journal, June 2002

Measurements of cross sections for the fusion-evaporation reactions Pu 244 ( Ca 48 , x n ) 292 − x 114 and Cm 245 ( Ca 48 , x n ) 293 − x 116 journal, May 2004

Production and Decay of the Heaviest Nuclei 1 293 , 294 17 and 1 294 18 journal, October 2012

Actinide targets for the synthesis of super-heavy elements journal, December 2015

Superheavy nuclei from 48Ca-induced reactions journal, December 2015

Decay spectroscopy of element 115 daughters: Rg 280 → Mt 276 and Mt 276 → Bh 272 journal, August 2015

The reaction 48Ca + 248Cm → 296116* studied at the GSI-SHIP journal, May 2012

Names and symbols of the elements with atomic numbers 113, 115, 117 and 118 (IUPAC Recommendations 2016) journal, December 2016

Fission barriers and probabilities of spontaneous fission for elements with Z≥ 100
journal, December 2015

Synthesis of the isotopes of elements 118 and 116 in the ${}^{249}{Cf}$ and ${}^{245}{Cm} + {}^{48}{Ca}$ fusion reactions
journal, October 2006

Heaviest nuclei from ⁴⁸ Ca-induced reactions
journal, March 2007

Experiments on the synthesis of element 115 in the reaction ${}^{243}{Am} ({}^{48}{Ca}, x n) {}^{291 - x}115$
journal, February 2004

Spectroscopy of Element 115 Decay Chains
journal, September 2013

${}^{48}{Ca} + {}^{249}{Bk}$ Fusion Reaction Leading to Element $Z = 117$ : Long-Lived $α$ -Decaying ${}^{270}{Db}$ and Discovery of ${}^{266}{Lr}$
journal, May 2014

Experiment on the Synthesis of Element 113 in the Reaction ²⁰⁹ Bi( ⁷⁰ Zn,n) ²⁷⁸ 113
journal, October 2004

Independent Verification of Element 114 Production in the ${}^{48}{Ca} + {}^{242}{Pu}$ Reaction
journal, September 2009

Synthesis of superheavy nuclei in the $^{48} Ca +^{244} Pu$ reaction: $^{288} 114$
journal, September 2000

Synthesis of a New Element with Atomic Number $Z = 117$
journal, April 2010

Experiments on the synthesis of superheavy nuclei ${}^{284}{Fl}$ and ${}^{285}{Fl}$ in the ${}^{239, 240}{Pu} + {}^{48}{Ca}$ reactions
journal, September 2015

New results on elements 111 and 112
journal, June 2002

Measurements of cross sections for the fusion-evaporation reactions ${}^{244}{Pu} {({}^{48}{Ca}, x n)}^{292 - x} 114$ and ${}^{245}{Cm} {({}^{48}{Ca}, x n)}^{293 - x} 116$
journal, May 2004

Production and Decay of the Heaviest Nuclei ${}^{293, 294}1 17$ and ${}^{294}1 18$
journal, October 2012

Actinide targets for the synthesis of super-heavy elements
journal, December 2015

Superheavy nuclei from 48Ca-induced reactions
journal, December 2015

Decay spectroscopy of element 115 daughters: ${}^{280}{Rg} \to {}^{276}{Mt}$ and ${}^{276}{Mt} \to {}^{272}{Bh}$
journal, August 2015

The reaction 48Ca + 248Cm → 296116* studied at the GSI-SHIP
journal, May 2012

Names and symbols of the elements with atomic numbers 113, 115, 117 and 118 (IUPAC Recommendations 2016)
journal, December 2016