{"id":121993,"date":"2024-11-04T15:02:53","date_gmt":"2024-11-04T08:02:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=121993"},"modified":"2024-11-04T15:02:53","modified_gmt":"2024-11-04T08:02:53","slug":"scientists-just-got-closer-to-creating-the-heaviest-element-ever-sciencealert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=121993","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Just Got Closer to Creating The Heaviest Element Ever : ScienceAlert"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>In a feat of modern-day alchemy, scientists have used a beam of vaporized titanium to create one of the heaviest elements on Earth \u2013 and they think this new method could pave the way to even heftier horizons.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>This is the first time the new technique \u2013 in which a hunk of the rare isotope titanium-50 is heated to almost 1650 \u00b0C (3000 \u00b0F) to release ions that are beamed at another element \u2013 has successfully produced a superheavy element,<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Livermorium\"> livermorium<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Livermorium was first synthesized back in 2000, and it&#8217;s not the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/detailed-simulation-of-worlds-heaviest-oganesson-atom-show-its-weirdness\">heaviest element humans have created<\/a> (that would be <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Oganesson\">oganesson,<\/a> atomic number 118).<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>So what&#8217;s the big deal if a couple atoms of livermorium recently popped into existence at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory \u2013 those <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/physics-perspective-superheavy-atoms-beyond-periodic-table\">keeping track of the periodic table<\/a> might ask? Livermorium is &#8216;so Y2K&#8217;, and has only 116 protons.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>But fusing a titanium beam with plutonium to create livermorium is just a test run for much bigger (or rather, heavier) things. The scientists hope to create an element that will be the heaviest ever produced: <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Unbinilium\">unbinilium<\/a>, with 120 protons.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_134006\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-134006\" style=\"width: 642px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/NewWayToMakeElement116_642.jpg\" alt=\"Graphic depicting the process of making element 116\" width=\"642\" height=\"288\" class=\"size-full wp-image-134006\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/NewWayToMakeElement116_642.jpg 642w, https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/NewWayToMakeElement116_642-600x269.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 642px) 100vw, 642px\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-134006\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Researchers fused isotopes of titanium and plutonium to make element 116. (Jenny Nuss\/Berkeley Lab)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;This reaction had never been demonstrated before, and it was essential to prove it was possible before embarking on our attempt to make 120,&#8221;<a href=\"https:\/\/newscenter.lbl.gov\/2024\/07\/23\/a-new-way-to-make-element-116-opens-the-door-to-heavier-atoms\/\"> says<\/a> nuclear chemist Jacklyn Gates of Berkeley Lab, who led the research.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Calcium-48, with its 20 protons, has been the go-to beam, because its &#8216;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Magic_number_(physics)\">magic number<\/a>&#8216; of protons and neutrons makes it more stable, helping it fuse with its target.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Titanium-50 is not &#8216;magic&#8217;, but it has the 22 protons needed to reach those heavier atomic weights, without being so heavy that it simply falls apart.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was an important first step to try to make something a little bit easier than a new element to see how going from a calcium beam to a titanium beam changes the rate at which we produce these elements,&#8221; physicist Jennifer Pore from Berkeley Lab <a href=\"https:\/\/newscenter.lbl.gov\/2024\/07\/23\/a-new-way-to-make-element-116-opens-the-door-to-heavier-atoms\/\">explains<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Creating element 116 with titanium validates that this method of production works and we can now plan our hunt for element 120.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>It took the team 22 days of operations at Berkeley Lab&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/cyclotron.lbl.gov\/\">88-inch cyclotron<\/a>, which accelerates the heavy ions of titanium into a beam powerful enough to fuse with its target. After all that, it yielded just two measly atoms of livermorium.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_134007\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-134007\" style=\"width: 642px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/ProposedWayToMakeElement120_642.jpg\" alt=\"A graphic depicting the proposed method to create element 120\" width=\"642\" height=\"288\" class=\"size-full wp-image-134007\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/ProposedWayToMakeElement120_642.jpg 642w, https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/images\/2024\/07\/ProposedWayToMakeElement120_642-600x269.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 642px) 100vw, 642px\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-134007\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Researchers want to fuse isotopes of titanium and californium to make element 120. (Jenny Nuss\/Berkeley Lab)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Creating unbinilium with this method, by aiming the beam at <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Californium\">californium-249<\/a>, will be much faster than previous routes could offer, but it&#8217;s still going to be a slog.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We think it will take about 10 times longer to make 120 than 116,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/newscenter.lbl.gov\/2024\/07\/23\/a-new-way-to-make-element-116-opens-the-door-to-heavier-atoms\/\">says<\/a> Berkeley Lab nuclear physicist Reiner Kruecken.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>This marks a return to the superheavy element race for the US Department of Energy&#8217;s Berkeley Lab, a <a href=\"https:\/\/newscenter.lbl.gov\/2019\/01\/28\/16-elements-berkeley-labs-contributions-to-the-periodic-table\/\">leader in elemental discovery<\/a> during the 20th century.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Scientists around the world have been on a race to produce unbinilium since at least 2006, when a Russian team at the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joint_Institute_for_Nuclear_Research\">Joint Institute for Nuclear Research<\/a> made a first attempt. Scientists at the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Germany made several attempts between 2007 and 2012, but no dice.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Now, with researchers from the US, China, and Russia throwing their hats in the ring, one has to wonder what exactly the future applications might be.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"A New Way to Make Element 116 Opens the Door to Heavier Atoms\" width=\"1170\" height=\"658\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4K4MfjsrIUE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe> frameborder=&#8221;0\u2033 allow=&#8221;accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share&#8221; referrerpolicy=&#8221;strict-origin-when-cross-origin&#8221; allowfullscreen&gt;<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s really important that the US is back in this race, because superheavy elements are very important scientifically,&#8221; nuclear physicist Witold Nazarewicz, who was not involved in the research, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/content\/article\/u-s-back-race-forge-unknown-superheavy-elements#:~:text=%E2%80%9CIt's%20really%20important%20that%20the,atomic%20nucleus%20before%20cracking%20up.\">told<\/a> Robert Service at <em>Science<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>Element 120 is near the theoretical &#8216;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Island_of_stability\">island of stability<\/a>&#8216;, a paradise for superheavy elements where half lives are luxuriously long, thanks to their &#8216;magic numbers&#8217; of protons and neutrons.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>These long-lived, stable superheavy elements are expected to offer scientists the chance to study the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/asteroids-may-be-hiding-never-seen-elements-from-beyond-the-periodic-table\">extremes of atomic behavior<\/a>, test <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/most-precise-measure-ever-brings-us-closer-to-knowing-the-ghost-particles-true-mass\">nuclear physics models<\/a>, and chart the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/physicists-have-just-found-a-brand-new-atomic-nucleus\">limits of atomic nuclei<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START single\/mrec --><br \/>\n<!-- END single\/mrec --><\/p>\n<p>This paper is published in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/journals.aps.org\/prl\/abstract\/10.1103\/PhysRevLett.133.172502\">Physical Review Letters<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>An earlier version of this article was published in August 2024.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1660802\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencealert.com\/scientists-just-got-closer-to-creating-the-heaviest-element-ever\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In a feat of modern-day alchemy, scientists have used a beam of vaporized titanium to create one of the heaviest elements on Earth \u2013 and they think this new method &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=121993\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8628],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-121993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-science","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121993","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=121993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121993\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=121993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=121993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=121993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}