Physicists have discovered a surprising new “Island of Inversion” in a place no one expected: among nuclei where the number ...

Physicists have found a new “island of inversion” in the nucleus of molybdenum-84, a perfectly balanced atom with equal numbers of protons and neutrons. The discovery upends a decades-old assumption ...

A new experiment using rare-isotope beams has provided new insight into the origin of proton-rich isotopes known as p-nuclei.

Spread the loveThe world of nuclear physics is constantly evolving, with new findings that challenge long-held beliefs about atomic structure and behavior. Recently, a collaborative effort from an ...

Physicists working with molybdenum-84, a nucleus containing exactly 42 protons and 42 neutrons, have found that this seemingly balanced atom defies one of nuclear physics’ longest-standing ...

The U.S. Department of Energy is investing an additional $527 million into a cutting-edge isotopes research facility at Michigan State University, where scientific breakthroughs are coming ever more ...

Researchers have created three never-before-observed isotopes of magnesium and aluminum. The results not only stake out new territory on the nuclear landscape, but also suggest that variants of ...

The nuclei of atoms consist of protons and neutrons held together by a force called nuclear binding energy. The nuclei of some isotopes with a specific number of protons and neutrons are more tightly ...

The strongest force in the Universe is the one that holds together the protons and neutrons in an atom’s nucleus. To unlock how elements are forged, the physics of neutron stars and more, scientists ...

Scientists have long wondered whether there is a limit to the number of protons and neutrons that can be clustered together to form the nucleus of an atom. A new study comes closer than ever to ...

Whereas some people play extreme sports, many nuclear physicists seek the thrill of extreme isotopes, by finding, for each chemical element, the largest possible number of neutrons that can be held by ...