The University of Mainz in Germany reported on June 25 that an international research team has once again confirmed the existence of chemical element 114 through experiments conducted at the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Germany.
During a four-week experiment, scientists bombarded a thin foil coated with plutonium with calcium ions inside a 120-meter-long particle accelerator, producing a total of 13 atoms of element 114. Although the number may not seem large, this is currently the world’s most efficient experiment for the synthesis of element 114. In the experiment, scientists also identified two isotopes of element 114 with mass numbers 288 and 289, respectively, which have a half-life of approximately one second.
In these experiments, scientists utilized a complex measuring device developed in recent years called the “TransActinide Separator and Chemistry Apparatus” (TASCA). This device can selectively separate atoms of element 114 from other reaction products in the accelerator and move them into a special semiconductor detector. By measuring the radiation emitted during the decay of the element, the atoms of element 114 can be accurately identified.
German scientists stated that the TASCA device is the most efficient equipment currently available in the world for verifying superheavy elements in accelerators. It will assist scientists in future experiments to conduct chemical testing on superheavy elements near element 114, in order to correctly position these elements within the periodic table. Scientists also hope that TASCA will help them discover new elements beyond element 118.
Chemical element 114 was first synthesized and confirmed more than 10 years ago by scientists at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia. Subsequently, American scientists also produced two atoms of this element. However, the element has not yet received official recognition from the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC).
Reprinted from: http://discover.news.163.com/10/0627/09/6A65VTBB000125LI.html