Unprecedented discovery of titanium brings scientists closer to the formation of element 120 in the periodic table

In general, scientists use calcium beams to synthesize new elements and expand the known periodic table. However, recently, a group of researchers at Berkeley Lab has achieved a breakthrough in nuclear physics that brings us closer to creating the long-awaited element 120: replacing the calcium beam with a beam of titanium.

With this modification, scientists were able to produce atoms of element 116, known as livermorium. Second New AtlasThe project, led by Rainer Krücken, allows the creation of rare superheavy elements, as well as enabling the discovery of element 120.

If you are in a hurry

1. Innovation in the labUsing a titanium beam, Berkeley Lab scientists created atoms of element 116 and demonstrated a new methodology for producing superheavy elements.
2. Find item 120The team now plans to use the same method to try to create element 120, which may reveal unique stability properties.
3. Future implicationsThe discovery of element 120 could not only expand the periodic table, but also provide new application possibilities due to its stability.

Titanium beams are a promising way to create new elements.

The periodic table organizes elements based on their atomic number (or the number of protons each element has in its nucleus). While the first 94 elements in the chart all exist in nature, anything heavier than that has only been created in a laboratory by fusing existing elements together.

For example, to create the superheavy elements 112 through 118, scientists fired a calcium beam at one of the elements. In the case of element 118 (oganesson), they fired a calcium beam (with 20 protons) at a target made of californium (with 98 protons)—the last stable and heaviest element in the table that could be used as a target.

So, to move forward, instead of changing the target, the researchers experimented with changing the beam. According to the article published in Physical Review LettersThe method the researchers are using involves using titanium-50, a rare isotope that makes up about 5% of natural titanium on Earth.

This isotope is heated to nearly 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, turning it into a plasma, which is then processed into a beam and fired at a plutonium target to produce livermorium.

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The experiment, which produced only two atoms of livermorium over 22 days, proved successful and paved the way for attempts to synthesize element 120.

The next step is to use a titanium beam on a californium target in an attempt to create element 120. Kroken estimates that this process would take about ten times longer than producing element 116, due to the rarity of the phenomenon.

The significance of this advance is not limited to the numerical increase in the periodic table; the possible discovery of element 120 could introduce what is called the “island of stability.” This theory suggests that some isotopes of superheavy elements may have much longer half-lives, making them more stable and potentially useful for practical applications.

This research, in addition to expanding our basic knowledge of nuclear chemistry, could eventually lead to technological innovations and new materials, impacting many areas of science and technology.