I read with great interest the article by Katherine Bourzac “Divining the Mysteries of the Atomic Nucleus” in the Jan. 29, 2024, issue of C&EN (page 30). Curious readers might like to know that an ...

Physicists have found a new “island of inversion” in the nucleus of molybdenum-84, a perfectly balanced atom with equal ...

For the first time, quarks and gluons were used to describe properties of atomic nuclei, which until now had been explained by the existence of protons and neutrons. The temporary pair of correlated ...

Scientists are exploring a new type of optical atomic clock based on ytterbium-173 ions that could help define the future ...

Smashing uranium-238 ions together proves to be a reliable way of imaging their nuclei. High-energy collision experiments reveal nuclear shapes that are strongly elongated and have no symmetry around ...

Physicists working with molybdenum-84, a nucleus containing exactly 42 protons and 42 neutrons, have found that this ...

The study is part of Henna Kokkonen's doctoral thesis. Credit: Tommi Sassi For the first time in almost 30 years, the heaviest nucleus decaying via proton emission has been measured. The previous ...

Gold and other heavy elements are born in some of the universe’s most violent events—but scientists still struggle to ...

Massive neutron stars colliding in space are thought to be able to create precious metals such as gold and platinum. The properties of these stars are still an enigma, but the answer may lie beneath ...

Findings in nuclear physics theory have received several Nobel Prizes (1975-nucleus vibrations and rotations, 1963-nuclear shell model, 1949-meson exchange model of nuclear forces). Despite these ...