Lead
After all, the “double magical” core of lead-208, “cornerstone” of nuclear physics is not perfectly spherical. Discovery challenges fundamental assumptions about nuclear structure.
A new experience about the lead-208 (208pb)a special isotope of lead, revealed a surprise in its atomic structure, when open.
Instead of the perfect spherical form that is predicted, its core was unexpectedly… crushedverified researchers from the University of Surrey.
The lead-208 is known for its special stability: that is what is called a core “Doublely Magic”a nucleus in which both protons and neutrons correspond to “magic numbers”, forming a fully occupied shell, explains the.
The 208PB isotope, with 82 protons and 126 neutrons, is considered a “cornerstone” of nuclear physics as the heaviest stable isotope known on any element, the researchers explain. Due to their stability, scientists long believed that their core was perfectly spherical. But the new discoveries, which appear detailed in an article on February 14 at Physical Review Letters, show otherwise.
The team used the Gamina Gamina ray skill from the US National Laboratory in the USA, to investigate the atomic 208PB structure, resorting to the bombarding of particles that move to speeds to 30 thousand kilometers per second – About 10% of the speed of light, in order to excite quantum states in the nucleus.
In four separate measurements, the team realized that the 208PB nucleus is not a perfect sphere – it was slightly flat.
The unexpected form of 208PB may be linked to irregular vibrations Inside the core, a theory that is still being investigated.
“We are now improving our theories to determine if these ideas are correct,” said nuclear physicist Paul Stevenson of the University of Surrey in.
