Project description
New supersensitive technique to study the world’s heaviest elements
The EU-funded LRC project aims to develop a novel method of optical spectroscopy to study the entirely unexplored atomic structure of the transition metals, starting with element 103, lawrencium. The researchers will search for optical spectral lines that can serve as fingerprints in the search for superheavy elements in the universe. The spectral lines are strongly affected by relativistic and quantum electrodynamic effects and therefore serve as anchor points for theoretical calculations that are also performed within this project. The project’s method of laser resonance chromatography is insensitive to physicochemical properties and tolerant to the decreasing yields with increasing atomic number. This paves the way for atomic structure studies of the superheavy elements, especially those of refractory nature beyond lawrencium.
Objective
This project aims at developing a novel method of optical spectroscopy to study the wholly unexplored atomic structure of the superheavy transition metals, starting with element 103, lawrencium (Lr). My team will experimentally identify optical spectral lines that will serve as fingerprints in the search for superheavy elements in the universe. The spectral lines are strongly influenced by relativistic and quantum electrodynamic effects and thus will constitute powerful benchmarks for atomic modeling incorporated within this project. Furthermore, since the nuclear charge distribution influences the atomic structure, our experimental data will advance our understanding of the effects of nuclear shells and deformations on the stability of radionuclides at the top of the Segré chart.
While I recently opened up the atomic structure of element 102, nobelium, the new challenges faced are the refractory nature of the elements, which lay ahead, coupled with shorter half-lives and decreasing production yields. I propose to overcome these by developing an ultra-sensitive and fast Laser Resonance Chromatography (LRC) to set the new standard in optical spectroscopy. The LRC method combines the element selectivity and spectral precision of laser spectroscopy with cutting-edge technology of ion-mobility mass spectrometry. Based on high-accuracy atomic calculations, my team will optically probe the 1S0-3P1 ground-state transition in singly-charged 255Lr ions and record the distinct arrival times of the ions after passing a drift tube to identify the laser resonance signal. We will perform the experiments at leading in-flight facilities such as the GSI velocity filter SHIP and the new GANIL separator S3.
Crucially, the LRC method will be insensitive to physicochemical properties and tolerant of the decreasing yields with increasing atomic number. This paves the way for atomic structure studies of the superheavy elements, in particular, those of refractory nature beyond lawrencium.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
ERC-COG - Consolidator GrantHost institution
55122 Mainz
Germany