Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences have synthesized a novel plutonium isotope, plutonium-227, marking a significant breakthrough in nuclear physics.
A team from the Institute of Modern Physics (IMP) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has successfully synthesized a new isotope of plutonium, plutonium-227. The results of their study were published in the journal Physical Review C on October 3.
In nuclear physics, certain numbers of protons and neutrons—2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126—are known as “magic numbers” because they create stable, closed shells within an atom. Systematic analyses in past studies have revealed a persistent weakening of the neutron shell closure of 126 up to uranium, making it fascinating to explore whether shell closures fade in the transuranium region.
“We have discovered the presence of the shell closure in neptunium isotopes through a series of experiments. However, due to the absence of experimental data, the robustness of this closure in plutonium isotopes remains unknown,” said Prof. Zaiguo Gan from IMP.
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