Fusion of Massive Systems and Superheavy Elements

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Other Title
  • 重イオン核融合反応と超重元素 （解説）
  • 重イオン核融合反応と超重元素
  • ジュウ イオンカク ユウゴウ ハンノウ ト チョウジュウ ゲンソ

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Description

On August 12, 2012, the anticipated event for the element 113 (with the atomic number 113 and the mass number 278) was detected in the fusion reaction between ^<70>Zn and ^<209>Bi by the experimental group led by Dr. Kosuke Morita at RIKEN. The potential energy between two colliding nuclei consists of a short range nuclear attraction and the long range Coulomb repulsion, and the potential barrier, which is referred to as the Coulomb barrier, appears due to the strong cancellation between the two interactions. For relatively light systems, such as ^<16>O + ^<209>Bi, fusion takes place once the Coulomb barrier is overcome. In contrast, for massive systems, such as ^<70>Zn + ^<209>Bi used in the experiment by Morita, et al., the quasi-fission process, in which the two nuclei reseparate after the Coulomb barrier is overcome, becomes increasingly dominant, and the fusion cross sections are hindered accordingly. Moreover, even if the fusion is succeeded, the compound nucleus quickly decays by the (ordinary) fission. In this article, we first discuss how it is rare to synthesize a new element by heavy-ion fusion reactions and discuss a significance of the experimental result of Dr. Morita, et al. We also discuss a comparison between the so called hot fusion and cold fusion reactions, a transition of fusion dynamics from light systems to heavy systems, and the role of nuclear structure such as nuclear deformation on fusion of massive systems.

Journal

  • Butsuri

    Butsuri 68 (10), 654-661, 2013-10-05

    The Physical Society of Japan

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