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Actinide and lanthanide thin layers with specific requirements regarding thickness, homogeneity, chemical purity, mechanical stability, and backing properties are applied in a multitude of physics and chemistry experiments. A novel target preparation method, the so-called "Drop-on-Demand" (DoD) technique, based on a commercial nanoliter (nL) dispenser is applied since a few years in the Nuclear Chemistry unit at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The wetting behaviour of the nL droplets on the substrate's surface is a key parameter determining the spatial distribution of the deposited material after evaporation. By switching from aqueous to organic solvents as well as by substrate surface modifications, the wetting behaviour can be influenced. Recent investigations on this influence and applications of the DoD method are presented. The produced actinide deposits were characterized by optical and scanning electron microscopy, by α spectroscopy as well as by radiographic imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first ionization potential (IP1) of element 103, lawrencium (Lr), has been successfully determined for the first time by using a newly developed method based on a surface ionization process. The measured IP1 value is 4.9630.080.07 eV. This value is the smallest among those of actinide elements and is in excellent agreement with the value of 4.963(15) eV predicted by state-of-the-art relativistic calculations also performed in this work. Our results strongly support that the Lr atom has an electronic configuration of [Rn]7s²5f147p¹1/2, which is influenced by strong relativistic effects. The present work provides a reliable benchmark for theoretical calculations and also opens the way for studies on atomic properties of heavy elements with atomic number Z > 100. Moreover, the present achievement has triggered a controversy on the position of lutetium (Lu) and Lr in the Periodic Table of Elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]