Search

Isomeric states in $^{256}\mathrm{No}$ were investigated using internal conversion electron and $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray spectroscopy with the GABRIELA detection system at the focal plane of the SHELS recoil separator, at the Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Research (FLNR, JINR, Dubna). The nuclei of interest were produced using the highly asymmetric fusion-evaporation reaction $^{238}\mathrm{U}(^{22}\mathrm{Ne},4n)^{256}\mathrm{No}$. The emission of internal conversion electrons and $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays occurring between a $^{256}\mathrm{No}$ implantation and a subsequent $\ensuremath{\alpha}$-decay event were studied, resulting in the observation of high-$K$ isomerism in this nobelium isotope. The nature of the isomeric states is discussed in terms of possible two- and four-quasiparticle structures.

The interest to perform laser spectroscopy in the heaviest elements arises from the strong impact of relativistic effects, electron correlations and quantum electrodynamics on their atomic structure. Once this atomic structure is well understood, laser spectroscopy also provides access to nuclear properties such as spins, mean square charge radii and electromagnetic moments in a nuclear-model independent way. This is of particular interest for the heaviest actinides around $N = 152$, a region of shell stabilized deformed nuclei. The experimental progress of laser spectroscopy in this region benefitted from continuous methodological and technical developments such as the introduction of buffer-gas-stopping techniques that enabled the access to ever more exotic nuclei far-off stability. The key challenges faced in this endeavor are small yields, nuclides with rather short half-lives and the need to search for atomic transitions in a wide spectral range guided by theoretical predictions. This paper describes the basics of the most common experimental methods and discusses selected recent results on the atomic and nuclear properties of the actinides up to nobelium where pioneering experiments were performed at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum f\"ur Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, Germany., Comment: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0146641020300818

International audience; Spontaneous fissions of the $^{252}$No and $^{254}$No nobelium isotopes have been studied in a series of experiments with the SHELS separator. These isotopes are produced by colliding a beam of $^{48}$Ca ions from the U-400 cyclotron with the $^{206}$Pb and $^{208}$Pb targets. The measured characteristics of the $^{252}$No and $^{254}$No spontaneous fissions include their half-lives, total kinetic energies of fission fragments, and prompt-neutron multiplicities. The average number of neutrons per $^{254}$No spontaneous-fission act is measured for the first time as 4.88 ± 0.53.

© 2019 Elsevier B.V. Laser spectroscopy enables the determination of fundamental atomic and nuclear properties with high precision. In view of the low production rates of the heaviest elements, a high total efficiency is a crucial requirement for any experimental setup to be used in on-line experiments. The setup requires the use of gas stopping techniques to slow down the radionuclides of interest. In previous studies laser spectroscopy was performed inside a gas-filled stopping cell with a limited spectral resolution of a few GHz. Collisional broadening inside stopping cells ultimately limits the precision of laser spectroscopic studies and hampers in particular hyperfine spectroscopy. The spectral linewidth is reduced by an order of magnitude when the laser spectroscopy is performed in a well-collimated gas jet formed by the exit nozzle of a gas stopping cell. In addition, the exposure of the jet to high-repetition rate laser light which saturates the optical transitions allows maintaining a high total efficiency. Here, we present a new setup dedicated to laser spectroscopy of the heaviest elements with an improved resolution, which is presently under construction. This setup combines the efficient filament neutralization demonstrated for nobelium with the improved resolution of in-gas-jet spectroscopy. ispartof: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms vol:463 pages:272-276 ispartof: location:SWITZERLAND, CERN, Geneva status: published

We calculate field isotope shifts for nobelium atoms using nuclear charge distributions which come from different nuclear models. We demonstrate that comparing calculated isotope shifts with experiment can serve as a testing ground for nuclear theories. It also provides a way of extracting parameters of nuclear charge distribution beyond nuclear RMS radius, e.g. parameter of quadrupole deformation $\beta$. We argue that previous interpretation of the isotope measurements in terms of $\delta \langle r^2 \rangle$ between $^{252,254}$No isotopes should be amended when nuclear deformation is taken into account. We calculate isotope shifts for other known isotopes and for hypothetically metastable isotope $^{286}$No for which the predictions of nuclear models differ substantially., Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures

Hyperfine interactions 241(1), 35 (2020). doi:10.1007/s10751-019-1689-1, Published by Springer Science + Business Media B.V, Dordrecht [u.a.]

We report the first ionization potentials (IP1) of the heavy actinides, fermium (Fm, atomic number Z = 100), mendelevium (Md, Z = 101), nobelium (No, Z = 102), and lawrencium (Lr, Z = 103), determined using a method based on a surface ionization process coupled to an online mass separation technique in an atom-at-a-time regime. The measured IP1 values agree well with those predicted by state-of-the-art relativistic calculations performed alongside the present measurements. Similar to the well-established behavior for the lanthanides, the IP1 values of the heavy actinides up to No increase with filling up the 5f orbital, while that of Lr is the lowest among the actinides. These results clearly demonstrate that the 5f orbital is fully filled at No with the [Rn]5f(14)7s(2) configuration and that Lr has a weakly bound electron outside the No core. In analogy to the lanthanide series, the present results unequivocally verify that the actinide series ends with Lr.

The mass distributions of fragments resulting from the fission of the isotopes of Fm and No at excitation energies 0–50 MeV are studied with the statistical scission-point fission model. The available experimental mass distributions in the spontaneous and thermal-neutron-induced fission are well described and the origin of transition between asymmetric and symmetric fission modes with variations of neutron number and excitation energy is explored.

The hydrogen like ion is the simplest structure of an atom, so the studying on it gives a change to test of methods using for determinating of atomic structures. It is also an occasion the studying on hydrogen like ions to understand atomic structure. For this reason, it is performed a study for hydrogen like nobelium (No101+, Z=102). The calculating level structure of No101+ have been used both multiconfiguration Hartree-Fock and multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock method. The calculations have contained some relativistic corrections and quantum electrodynamic effects. There are very few theoretical works in available literature and no experimental one for No101+. The calculated results have been interpreted in comparison with other theoretical results.

Using the improved scission-point model, the mass and charge distributions of fragments resulting from the fission of californium, fermium, and nobelium isotopes are calculated and compared with the available experimental data. For the fissioning Fm and No nuclei, the transitions from a two-peaked to a single-peaked mass distributions are predicted. The transition between asymmetric and symmetric fission modes with the variation of neutron number is shown to be related to the change of the potential energy surface at scission point.

Optical spectroscopy constitutes the historical path to accumulate basic knowledge on the atom and its structure. Former work based on fluorescence and resonance ionization spectroscopy enabled identifying optical spectral lines up to element 102, nobelium. The new challenges faced in this research field are the refractory nature of the heavier elements and the decreasing production yields. A new concept of ion-mobility-assisted laser spectroscopy is proposed to overcome the sensitivity limits of atomic structure investigations persisting in the region of the superheavy elements. The concept offers capabilities of both broadband-level searches and high-resolution hyperfine spectroscopy of synthetic elements beyond nobelium., https://journals.aps.org/prl/accepted/7a07aY5eYc818860c3f4729124527b3d69a165378

Atomic effective one-electron potentials in a compact analytic form in terms of a few Gaussian charge distributions are developed, for Hydrogen through Nobelium, for starting molecular electronic structure calculations by a simple diagonalization. For each element, all terms but one are optimized in an isolated-atom Hartree--Fock calculation, and the last one is parametrized on a set of molecules. This one-parameter-per-atom model gives a good starting guess for typical molecules and may be of interest even on its own., Article and Supplementary Material

We calculate excitation energies for low states of nobelium, including states with open $5f$ subshell. An efficient version of the many-electron configuration-interaction method for treating the atom as a sixteen external electrons system has been developed and used. The method is tested on calculations for ytterbium which has external electron structure similar to nobelium. The results for nobelium are important for prediction of its spectrum and for interpretation of recent measurements. Ytterbium is mostly used to study the features of the method., 4 pages, 1 figure

The experimental determination of atomic levels and the first ionization potential of the heaviest elements ( Z ⩾ 100 ) is key to challenge theoretical predictions and to reveal changes in the atomic shell structure. These elements are only artificially produced in complete-fusion evaporation reactions at on-line facilities such as the GSI in Darmstadt at a rate of, at most, a few atoms per second. Hence, highly sensitive spectroscopic methods are required. Laser spectroscopy is one of the most powerful and valuable tools to investigate atomic properties. In combination with a buffer-gas filled stopping cell, the Radiation Detected Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy (RADRIS) technique provides the highest sensitivity for laser spectroscopy on the heaviest elements. The RADRIS setup, as well as the measurement procedure, have been optimized and characterized using the α -emitter 155 Yb in on-line conditions, resulting in an overall efficiency well above 1%. This paves the way for a successful search of excited atomic levels in nobelium and heavier elements.

Resonance ionization spectroscopy of nobelium (atomic number 102) reveals its ground-state transition and an upper limit for its ionization potential, paving the way to characterizing even heavier elements via optical spectroscopy. Characterizing the heaviest elements in the periodic table is a gruelling task because they are radioactive, exist only for split seconds at a time and need to be artificially produced in sufficient quantities by complicated procedures. The heaviest element that has been characterized by optical spectroscopy is fermium, which has an atomic number of 100. Mustapha Laatiaoui et al. extend the methods used for fermium to perform optical spectroscopy on nobelium (atomic number 102). Through laser resonance ionization spectroscopy, they identify the ground-state transition of the atom and manage to investigate highly excited states called Rydberg states. This allows them to determine an upper limit for the atomic ionization potential of nobelium. This study opens the door to the characterization of even heavier elements such as lawrencium using optical spectroscopy. Optical spectroscopy of a primordial isotope has traditionally formed the basis for understanding the atomic structure of an element. Such studies have been conducted for most elements1 and theoretical modelling can be performed to high precision2,3, taking into account relativistic effects that scale approximately as the square of the atomic number. However, for the transfermium elements (those with atomic numbers greater than 100), the atomic structure is experimentally unknown. These radioactive elements are produced in nuclear fusion reactions at rates of only a few atoms per second at most and must be studied immediately following their production4, which has so far precluded their optical spectroscopy. Here we report laser resonance ionization spectroscopy of nobelium (No; atomic number 102) in single-atom-at-a-time quantities, in which we identify the ground-state transition 1S0 1P1. By combining this result with data from an observed Rydberg series, we obtain an upper limit for the ionization potential of nobelium. These accurate results from direct laser excitations of outer-shell electrons cannot be achieved using state-of-the-art relativistic many-body calculations5,6,7,8 that include quantum electrodynamic effects, owing to large uncertainties in the modelled transition energies of the complex systems under consideration. Our work opens the door to high-precision measurements of various atomic and nuclear properties of elements heavier than nobelium, and motivates future theoretical work.

Direct high-precision mass spectrometry of the heaviest elements with SHIPTRAP, at GSI in Darmstadt, Germany, requires high efficiency to deal with the low production rates of such exotic nuclides. A second-generation gas stopping cell, operating at cryogenic temperatures, was developed and recently integrated into the relocated system to boost the overall efficiency. Offline measurements using 223Ra and 225Ac recoil-ion sources placed inside the gas volume were performed to characterize the gas stopping cell with respect to purity and extraction efficiency. In addition, a first online test using the fusion-evaporation residue 254No was performed, resulting in a combined stopping and extraction efficiency of 33(5)%. An extraction time of 55(44) ms was achieved. The overall efficiency of SHIPTRAP for fusion-evaporation reaction products was increased by an order of magnitude to 6(1)%. This will pave the way for direct mass spectrometry of heavier and more exotic nuclei, eventually in the region of superheavy elements with proton numbers .

International audience; In the last years we carried out several experiments aimed to investigate properties of short-lived SF isotopes. The neutron-deficient isotopes of nobelium were produced in fusion-evaporation reactions using 206,208Pb targets and an intense 48Ca-beam. Fusionevaporation residues were separated by the SHELS separator and implanted into a largearea double-sided 48×48 strip silicon detector surrounded by 3He-based neutron counters. Half-lives and decay branching ratios for 252,254No isotopes were measured. The average number of neutrons per spontaneous fission of 254No determined for the first time.

Until recently, ground-state nuclear moments of the heaviest nuclei could only be inferred from nuclear spectroscopy, where model assumptions are required. Laser spectroscopy in combination with modern atomic structure calculations is now able to probe these moments directly, in a comprehensive and nuclear-model-independent way. Here we report on unique access to the differential mean-square charge radii of ^{252,253,254}No, and therefore to changes in nuclear size and shape. State-of-the-art nuclear density functional calculations describe well the changes in nuclear charge radii in the region of the heavy actinides, indicating an appreciable central depression in the deformed proton density distribution in ^{252,254}No isotopes. Finally, the hyperfine splitting of ^{253}No was evaluated, enabling a complementary measure of its (quadrupole) deformation, as well as an insight into the neutron single-particle wave function via the nuclear spin and magnetic moment. numpages: 6 ispartof: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS vol:120 issue:23 pages:232503-232503 ispartof: location:United States status: Published online

It is an occasion to understand and test the methods for determination of atomic structure on hydrogen like ions especially with high atomic number, Z. Many studies such as interpretation of astrophysical spectra and atomic collision studies, the development of X-ray lasers etc. demand exact transition parameters data. This need is a reason of the present paper to support more precise atomic data of electric dipole transitions parameters for hydrogen like nobelium (No 101+ , Z=102). The wavelengths, logarithmic weighted oscillator strengths and transition probabilities of No 101+ have been reproduced with relativistic multiconfiguration Hartree-Fock (MCHF) and fully relativistic multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock (MCDF) methods. The transitions between nl ( n =1-9 and l =0-4) levels have been investigated in this work. The results of MCHF and MCDF methods have been compared with a unique theoretical work, because there has been neither theoretical nor experimental work in available literature.

The systematic of the spontaneous fission half-lives for the nuclei $^{242-262}$Fm and $^{250-260}$No is analyzed, within a least action scheme, with the parametrization D1M of the Gogny energy density functional. The properties of the dynamic (least action) fission paths are analyzed and compared to those of the static (minimal energy) ones. The constrained Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov approximation is used to compute deformed mean-field configurations, zero-point quantum corrections and collective inertias. It is shown that a cumbersome full variational search of the least action fission path, within the space of HFB states, might not be required if the relevant degrees of freedom are taken into account in the minimization of the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin action. The action is minimized in terms of pairing fluctuations that explore the pairing content of the HFB states along the fission paths of the considered nuclei. It is found that, for a given shape, the minimum of the action in fermium and nobelium nuclei corresponds to a value of the pairing fluctuations larger than the one associated with the minimal energy solution for the same shape. The reduction of the action, via larger pairing correlations, has a significant impact on the predicted spontaneous fission half-lives improving their comparison with the experiment by several orders of magnitude., Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures

Advances in laser spectroscopy of superheavy ($Z>100$) elements enabled determination of the nuclear moments of the heaviest nuclei, which requires high-precision atomic calculations of the relevant hyperfine structure (HFS) constants. Here, we calculated the HFS constants and energy levels for a number of nobelium (Z=102) states using the hybrid approach, combining linearized coupled-cluster and configuration interaction methods. We also carried out an extensive study of the No energies using 16-electron configuration interaction method to determine the position of the (5f^{13}7s^2 6d) and (5f^{13}7s^2 7p) levels with a hole in the 5f shell to evaluate their potential effect on the hyperfine structure calculations of the low-lying (5f^{14}7s6d) and (5f^{14}7s7p) levels. We find that unlike the case of Yb, the mixing of the low-lying levels with filled and unfilled f shell is small and does not significantly influence their properties. The resulting HFS constants for the 5f^{14}7s7p 1P1 level, combined with laser-spectroscopy measurement, were used to extract nobelium nuclear properties [S. Raeder et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 232503 (2018)], 5 pages

While there is little ambiguity in the definition of a chemical element, it is far from evident what it means to have discovered a new element and what the criteria for discovery are. In the post-World War II era recognition of new elements was the responsibility of IUPAC, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, which also had the final decision regarding names. The synthesis of still more transuranic elements and the corresponding priority claims resulted in the mid-1980s in the so-called Transfermium Working Group (TWG) established jointly by IUPAC and the physicists’ union IUPAP. However, the recommendations of TWG only created more controversies. Another and earlier discovery controversy concerned element 102, the priority of which was claimed by Swedish, American and Russian research groups. Despite an extended controversy, the originally proposed name, nobelium, was accepted by IUPAC.

One of the most important atomic properties governing an element's chemical behavior is the energy required to remove its least-bound electron, referred to as the first ionization potential. For the heaviest elements, this fundamental quantity is strongly influenced by relativistic effects which lead to unique chemical properties. Laser spectroscopy on an atom-at-a-time scale was developed and applied to probe the optical spectrum of neutral nobelium near the ionization threshold. The first ionization potential of nobelium is determined here with a very high precision from the convergence of measured Rydberg series to be 6.626 21±0.000 05 eV. This work provides a stringent benchmark for state-of-the-art many-body atomic modeling that considers relativistic and quantum electrodynamic effects and paves the way for high-precision measurements of atomic properties of elements only available from heavy-ion accelerator facilities. ispartof: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS vol:120 issue:26 pages:263003-263003 ispartof: location:United States status: published

In the current work, TiO2/Al2O3 binary oxide photocatalysts were synthesized via two different sol-gel protocols (P1 and P2), where various TiO2 to Al2O3 mole ratios (0.5 and 1.0) and calcination temperatures (150-1000 degrees C) were utilized in the synthesis. Structural characterization of the synthesized binary oxide photocatalysts was also performed via BET surface area analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. The photocatalytic NO(g) oxidation performances of these binary oxides were measured under UVA irradiation in a comparative fashion to that of a Degussa P25 industrial benchmark. TiO2/Al2O3 binary oxide photocatalysts demonstrate a novel approach which is essentially a fusion of NSR (NOx storage reduction) and PCO (photocatalytic oxidation) technologies. In this approach, rather than attempting to perform complete NOx reduction, NO(g) is oxidized on a photocatalyst surface and stored in the solidstate. Current results suggest that alumina domains can be utilized as active NOx capturing sites that can significantly eliminate the release of toxic NO2(g) into the atmosphere. Using either (P1) or (P2) protocols, structurally different binary oxide systems can be synthesized enabling much superior photocatalytic total NOx removal (i.e. up to 176% higher) than Degussa P25. Furthermore, such binary oxides can also simultaneously decrease the toxic NO2(g) emission to the atmosphere by 75% with respect to that of Degussa P25. There is a complex interplay between calcination temperature, crystal structure, composition and specific surface area, which dictate the ultimate photocatalytic activity in a coordinative manner. Two structurally different photocatalysts prepared via different preparation protocols reveal comparably high photocatalytic activities implying that the active sites responsible for the photocatalytic NO(g) oxidation and storage have a non-trivial nature. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

International audience; Using the sensitive Radiation Detected Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy (RADRIS) techniquean optical transition in neutral nobelium (No, Z = 102) was identified. A remnant signal when delaying the ionizing laser indicated the influence of a strong buffer gas induced de-excitation of the optically populated level. A subsequent investigation of the chemical homologue, ytterbium (Yb, Z = 70), enabled a detailed study of the atomic levels involved in this process, leading to the development of a rate equation model. This paves the way for characterizing resonance ionization spectroscopy (RIS) schemes used in the studyof nobelium and beyond, where atomic properties are currently unknown.

Chemical studies of the heaviest elements in liquid phases at Japan atomic energy agency (JAEA) are reviewed. From the systematic investigation of ion-exchange chromatographic behavior of element 104, rutherfordium (Rf), based on an atom-at-a-time scale, it has been found that the properties of Rf are quite similar to those of the group-4 homologs, Zr and Hf, in the formation of chloride, nitrate, and sulfate complexes, although there are some differences in complexation strength between Rf and the lighter homologues. On the contrary, fluoride complex formation of Rf is significantly different from that of the homologues. Anionic fluoride complexation of element 105, dubnium (Db), has also been studied. The result clearly demonstrates that the fluoride complex formation of Db is considerably different from that of the group-5 homologue Ta, while the behavior of Db is similar to that of the lighter homologue Nb. A new electrochemical approach to the heaviest elements has been successfully conducted by a flow electrolytic column chromatographic method; the oxidation state of element 102, nobelium (No), with single atoms can be controlled with the developed apparatus. Prospects for the future studies on chemical properties of the heaviest elements at JAEA will be briefly considered.

Atomic nuclei far from stability continue to challenge our understanding. For example, theoretical models have predicted an “island of stability” in the region of the superheavy elements due to the closure of spherical proton and neutron shells. Depending on the model, these are expected at Z = 114, 120 or even 126 and N = 172 or 184. Valuable information on the road to the island of stability is derived from high-precision mass measurements, which give direct access to binding energies of short-lived trans-uranium nuclei. Recently, direct mass measurements at SHIPTRAP have been extended to nobelium and lawrencium isotopes around the deformed shell gap N = 152. In order to further extend mass measurements to the region of superheavy elements, new technical developments are required to increase the performance of our setup. The sensitivity will increase through the implementation of a new detection method, where observation of one single ion is sufficient. Together with the use of a more efficient gas stopping cell, this will us allow to significantly enhance the overall efficiency of SHIPTRAP.

Strong efforts are undertaken at GSI in Darmstadt preparing for laser spectroscopy of the synthetic element nobelium. Several excimer- and dye lasers will be used in the forthcoming search for the $^1$P$_1$ -level in 254No. Based on the highly-efficient Radiation Detected Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy (RADRIS) technique, the identification of this excited state predicted around 3.8 eV becomes possible within a relatively short period of beam-time. This will form the basis for future studies of the atomic structure of the heaviest elements.

Penning-trap mass spectrometry (PTMS) is a mature technique to provide atomic masses with highest precision. Applied to radionuclides it enables us to investigate their nuclear structure via binding energies and derived quantities such as nucleon separation energies. Recent progress in slowing down radioactive ion beams in buffer gas cells in combination with advanced ion-manipulation techniques has opened the door to access even the elements above fermium by PTMS. Such elements are produced in complete fusion–evaporation reactions of heavy ions with lead, bismuth, and actinide targets at very low rates. Pioneering high-precision mass measurements of nobelium and lawrencium isotopes have been performed with SHIPTRAP at the GSI Darmstadt, Germany. These have illustrated that direct mass measurements provide reliable anchor points to pin down decay chains and that they allow mapping nuclear shell effects, the reason for the very existence of the heaviest elements. Thus, accurate masses contribute to our understanding of these exotic nuclei with extreme proton numbers. In this article experimental challenges in mass measurements of the heaviest elements with Penning traps are discussed. Some illustrative examples of the nuclear structure features displayed based on the presently known masses are given.

The sensitivity of laser spectroscopic methods has been increased over the past two decades dramatically so that today the spectroscopy of superheavy elements appears on the horizon as a realistic option. For elements with Z > 100 no experimental atomic or ionic level structure information is known so far. These elements cannot be bread in high flux nuclear power reactors via successive neutron capture and \(\beta ^-\) decay but must be produced in accelerator-based nuclear fusion-evaporation reactions. Laser spectroscopic investigations at low rates take advantage of the storage of ions or atoms in rare gas traps. A first successful experiment was conducted only recently for the element nobelium with the atomic number Z = 102 behind the velocity filter SHIP at GSI in Darmstadt, Germany, applying the RAdioactive decay Detected Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy (RADRIS) method. The discovery of the \(7s^2~^1S_0\) \(\rightarrow \) \(7s\,7p~^1P_1\) optical transition opens up the possibility to measure the ionization potential, isotope shifts, or even the hyperfine splitting for \(^{252,253,254}\)No isotopes. The high precision of laser spectroscopic methods is a challenge for state-of-the-art relativistic many body calculations of the level structure.

We predict ionization potentials of superheavy elements No, Lr, and Rf and their ions using a relativistic hybrid method that combines configuration interaction (CI) with the linearized coupled-cluster approach. Extensive study of the completeness of the four-electron CI calculations for Hf and Rf was carried out. As a test of theoretical accuracy, we also calculated ionization potential of Yb, Lu, Hf, and their ions, which are homologues of the superheavy elements of this study.

Singlet-paired coupled cluster doubles (CCD0) is a simplification of CCD that relinquishes a fraction of dynamic correlation in order to be able to describe static correlation. Combinations of CCD0 with density functionals that recover specifically the dynamic correlation missing in the former have also been developed recently. Here, we assess the accuracy of CCD0 and CCD0+DFT (and variants of these using Brueckner orbitals) as compared to well-established quantum chemical methods for describing ground-state properties of singlet actinide molecules. The $f^0$ actinyl series (UO$_2^{2+}$, NpO$_2^{2+}$, PuO$_2^{2+}$), the isoelectronic NUN, and Thorium (ThO, ThO$^{2+}$) and Nobelium (NoO, NoO$_2$) oxides are studied., Comment: 8 pages

Quantum-mechanical shell effects are expected to strongly enhance nuclear binding on an "island of stability" of superheavy elements. The predicted center at proton number $Z=114,120$, or $126$ and neutron number $N=184$ has been substantiated by the recent synthesis of new elements up to $Z=118$. However the location of the center and the extension of the island of stability remain vague. High-precision mass spectrometry allows the direct measurement of nuclear binding energies and thus the determination of the strength of shell effects. Here, we present such measurements for nobelium and lawrencium isotopes, which also pin down the deformed shell gap at $N=152$., Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures

Currently, gas phase chemistry experiments with heaviest elements are usually performed with the gas-jet technique with the disadvantage that all reaction products are collected in a gas-filled thermalisation chamber adjacent to the target. The incorporation of a physical preseparation device between target and collection chamber opens up the perspective to perform new chemical studies. But this approach requires detailed knowledge of the stopping force (STF) of the heaviest elements in various materials. Measurements of the energy loss of mercury (Hg), radon (Rn), and nobelium (No) in Mylar and argon (Ar) were performed at low kinetic energies of around (40–270) keV per nucleon. The experimentally obtained values were compared with STF calculations of the commonly used program for calculating stopping and ranges of ions in matter (SRIM). Using the obtained data points an extrapolation of the STF up to element 114, eka-lead, in the same stopping media was carried out. These estimations were applied to design and to perform a first chemical experiment with a superheavy element behind a physical preseparator using the nuclear fusion reaction 244Pu(48Ca; 3n)289114. One decay chain assigned to an atom of 285112, the α-decay product of 289114, was observed.

This article reviews the following topics which were discussed at the 375th Wilhelm and Else Heraeus-Seminar Workshop on the Atomic Properties of the Heaviest Elements held from September 25–27, 2006 at the Abtei Frauenworth im Chiemsee, Germany: (i) the recent progress in the production of the heaviest elements, the investigation of their nuclear structure, and prospects for direct mass measurements in Penning traps. (ii) Recent studies of their chemical properties with the aid of volatile species and single-atom aqueous-phase chemistry; (iii) the current status and future prospects for the investigation of atomic and ionic properties such as optical spectroscopy in gas cells and ion traps, including fully relativistic calculations of the atomic level structure with predictions for the element nobelium; and (iv) ionic charge radii measurements in buffer gas filled drift cells, and ion chemical reactions in the gas phase.

For the investigation of the atomic level structure of heavy elements which can only be produced at on-line facilities such as GSI, a novel experimental procedure has been developed. It is based on Radiation Detected Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy (RADRIS) and can be applied to elements like nobelium produced at rates of a few ions per second. Fusion reaction products are separated from the primary beam by the velocity filter SHIP at GSI, stopped in a buffer gas cell, collected on a tantalum filament and then re-evaporated as atoms. The ions produced by resonance ionization with tunable laser beams are detected via their characteristic α decay. First on-line experiments on α-active 155 Yb, which is supposed to have an atomic level structure similar to nobelium, were performed. These test experiments focused on the optimization of the collection and re-evaporation process of the radioactive ions, the laser ionization efficiency and the detection via α decay. An overall efficiency for RADRIS of 0.8% with respect to the target production rate was measured. While further improvements of this efficiency are in progress it should already be sufficient for the search for atomic levels in nobelium.

Isotopes of elements up to Z = 113 have been synthesized using medium heavy projectiles and target nuclei around doubly magic 208Pb. Synthesis of still heavier elements in reactions of 48Ca projectiles with actinide target nuclei has been reported. To obtain more information about production mechanism of transfermium isotopes nuclear reaction studies including investigations of massive transfer were resumed at SHIP, GSI. Nuclear structure investigations at SHIP have been concentrated so far mainly on systematic investigations of low lying Nilsson levels in odd-mass nuclei. Recently this field has been extended to decay studies of isomeric states in nobelium nuclei at E* > 1 MeV.

We calculate properties of the ground and excited states of nuclei in the nobelium region for proton and neutron numbers of 92, 43 LaTeX pages, 14 figures, accepted in Nuclear Physics A, Special Issue on Superheavy Elements

The four-component Fock-space coupled cluster and intermediate Hamiltonian methods are implemented to evaluate atomic properties. The latter include the spectra of nobelium and lawrencium (elements 102 and 103) in the range 20000-30000 cm−1, the polarizabilities of elements 112-114 and 118, required for estimating their adsorption enthalpies on surfaces used to separate them in accelerators, and the nuclear quadrupole moments of some heavy atoms. The calculations on superheavy elements are supported by the very good agreement with experiment obtained for the lighter homologues.

We investigate the ground-state rotational bands of nuclei with Z≥100 using cluster model proposed by Buck et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 94 (2005) 202501]. The core-cluster decomposition of each nucleus is determined by the corresponding electric quadrupole transition strength B(E2:2+→0+). The theoretical spectra of fermium and nobelium isotopes are compared with available experimental data. Good agreement between model and data is obtained.

The stability of an atomic nucleus is determined by the outcome of a tug-of-war between the attractive strong nuclear force and the repulsive electrostatic force between the protons in the nucleus. If 100 protons and about 150 neutrons or more are assembled into a nucleus, the repulsion usually becomes dominant and causes the nucleus to fission. For certain 'magic numbers' of protons and neutrons this repulsion can be overcome and the nucleus stabilized. In particular an 'island of stability' is predicted beyond the actinides, where long-lived or even stable superheavy elements can exist, but its precise limits are unknown. Experiments can help determine where this island lies, however. Spectroscopy of the nobelium isotope, 254No reveals three excited structures, two of them metastable. This finding will help to constrain nuclear models of the superheavy elements, and provides more data for the search for the next magic numbers. Spectroscopic studies of the nobelium isotope 254No — the heaviest nucleus studied in this manner to date — details three excited structures, two of which are metastable, which should help to constrain nuclear models of the superheavy elements. A long-standing prediction of nuclear models is the emergence of a region of long-lived, or even stable, superheavy elements beyond the actinides. These nuclei owe their enhanced stability to closed shells in the structure of both protons and neutrons1,2,3. However, theoretical approaches to date do not yield consistent predictions of the precise limits of the ‘island of stability’; experimental studies are therefore crucial. The bulk of experimental effort so far has been focused on the direct creation of superheavy elements in heavy ion fusion reactions, leading to the production of elements up to proton number Z = 118 (refs 4, 5). Recently, it has become possible to make detailed spectroscopic studies6,7 of nuclei beyond fermium (Z = 100), with the aim of understanding the underlying single-particle structure of superheavy elements. Here we report such a study of the nobelium isotope 254No, with 102 protons and 152 neutrons—the heaviest nucleus studied in this manner to date. We find three excited structures, two of which are isomeric (metastable). One of these structures is firmly assigned to a two-proton excitation. These states are highly significant as their location is sensitive to single-particle levels above the gap in shell energies predicted at Z = 114, and thus provide a microscopic benchmark for nuclear models of the superheavy elements.

Following the concept of static exchange-correlation charge density, the total integrated exchange-charge density parameter, Qx, is calculated within the exchange-only, relativistic optimized potential model and employed to examine the atomic shell boundaries in nobelium atom. Six clear maxima in Qx(r) are shown to reflect all the shell boundaries. A comparison of the Qx(r) with the non-relativistic calculations reveal interesting differences in the core and valence regions. The radial behavior of Qx(r) is shown to be extremely sensitive to the details of the relativistic effects.

Prolapse-free relativistic Gaussian basis sets are presented for all the closed-shell elements up to nobelium, using the spherical nuclear model. These relativistic Gaussian basis sets were generated using the polynomial version of the generator coordinate Dirac–Fock (p-CGDF) method with the goal of obtaining an energy difference with respect to numerical results in the millihartree order of magnitude, resulting in a good balance between cost and accuracy. The discretization parameters for generating the Gaussian exponents are also presented. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006

Recent atomic computations on the (super–) heavy elements have raised the expectation that their low–lying excitation and ionization energies can be calculated with an accuracy of a few hundredth of an eV and, hence, that such computations might help in the identification of new lines. For most many–electron atoms, however, the higher–order relativistic and quantum electrodynamical (QED) effects are included so far only in a rather approximate form. Using different model computations for the neutral and weakly ionized ytterbium (Z = 70) and nobelium atoms (Z = 102), it is shown here that QED effects alone may lead to an uncertainty of 20–50 meV for the excitation energies of all super–heavy elements, and that even for highly–correlated wave functions the theoretical predictions are presently not more accurate than about 0.1 eV. Moreover, in order to support forthcoming spectroscopic measurements on the elements beyond Z = 100, detailed computations have been carried out for the two low–lying 1S0 - 1,3P1o excitation energies of nobelium by using systematically enlarged multiconfiguration Dirac–Fock wave functions.

Heavy-ion fusion reactions 48Ca + 204Pb and 44Ca + 208Pb leading to the same compound nucleus 252No* were run in attempts to produce new neutron-deficient spontaneous-fission isotopes of 249,250No using the electrostatic separator VASSILISSA. Production cross-sections for the spontaneous-fission activities with the half-lives 5.6 and 54 μs observed in these reactions are compared with the measured ones for the well-known isotopes of 251 - 255No formed in the heavy-ion fusion reactions 48Ca + 206Pb and 48Ca + 208Pb. The obtained excitation functions for the reaction products formed after the evaporation of 1-4 neutrons from the corresponding compound No nuclei have been compared with similar data obtained earlier and results of statistical model calculations.

It is demonstrated that the compounds of late actinides, namely Lawrencium and Nobelium surprisingly exhibit unusual nonactinide properties in that unlike other actinides the chemistry of these species is principally determined by the 7s and 7p orbitals rather than the 5f or 6d shells. Relativistic computations including electron correlation and spin–orbit effects using the complete-active space multiconfiguration self-consistent field followed by second-order and multireference relativistic configuration interaction (RCI) techniques are considered for the Lawrencium and Nobelium dihydrides as well the atoms. The ground and first excited states of Lawrencium and Nobelium arise from the 7s and 7p shells, and thus the potential energy surfaces of these species are unusual in having considerable 7p characteristics. Both molecules form stable bent ground states reminiscent of sp2 hybridization with equilibrium bond angles near 120°. The Lawrencium compounds exhibit unusual characteristics due to avoided cross...