TY - JOUR
T1 - Atom-at-a-time laser resonance ionization spectroscopy of nobelium
AU - Laatiaoui, Mustapha
AU - Lauth, Werner
AU - Backe, Hartmut
AU - Block, Michael
AU - Ackermann, Dieter
AU - Cheal, Bradley
AU - Chhetri, Premaditya
AU - Düllmann, Christoph Emanuel
AU - van Duppen, Piet
AU - Even, Julia
AU - Ferrer, Rafael
AU - Giacoppo, Francesca
AU - Götz, Stefan
AU - Heßberger, Fritz Peter
AU - Huyse, Mark
AU - Kaleja, Oliver
AU - Khuyagbaatar, Jadambaa
AU - Kunz, Peter
AU - Lautenschläger, Felix
AU - Mistry, Andrew Kishor
AU - Raeder, Sebastian
AU - Ramirez, Enrique Minaya
AU - Walther, Thomas
AU - Wraith, Calvin
AU - Yakushev, Alexander
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - Optical spectroscopy of a primordial isotope has traditionally formed the basis for understanding the atomic structure of an element. Such studies have been conducted for most elements and theoretical modelling can be performed to high precision, taking into account relativistic effects that scale approximately as the square of the atomic number. However, for the transfermium elements (those with atomic numbers greater than 100), the atomic structure is experimentally unknown. These radioactive elements are produced in nuclear fusion reactions at rates of only a few atoms per second at most and must be studied immediately following their production, which has so far precluded their optical spectroscopy. Here we report laser resonance ionization spectroscopy of nobelium (No; atomic number 102) in single-atom-at-a-time quantities, in which we identify the ground-state transition (1)S0(1)P1. By combining this result with data from an observed Rydberg series, we obtain an upper limit for the ionization potential of nobelium. These accurate results from direct laser excitations of outer-shell electrons cannot be achieved using state-of-the-art relativistic many-body calculations that include quantum electrodynamic effects, owing to large uncertainties in the modelled transition energies of the complex systems under consideration. Our work opens the door to high-precision measurements of various atomic and nuclear properties of elements heavier than nobelium, and motivates future theoretical work.
AB - Optical spectroscopy of a primordial isotope has traditionally formed the basis for understanding the atomic structure of an element. Such studies have been conducted for most elements and theoretical modelling can be performed to high precision, taking into account relativistic effects that scale approximately as the square of the atomic number. However, for the transfermium elements (those with atomic numbers greater than 100), the atomic structure is experimentally unknown. These radioactive elements are produced in nuclear fusion reactions at rates of only a few atoms per second at most and must be studied immediately following their production, which has so far precluded their optical spectroscopy. Here we report laser resonance ionization spectroscopy of nobelium (No; atomic number 102) in single-atom-at-a-time quantities, in which we identify the ground-state transition (1)S0(1)P1. By combining this result with data from an observed Rydberg series, we obtain an upper limit for the ionization potential of nobelium. These accurate results from direct laser excitations of outer-shell electrons cannot be achieved using state-of-the-art relativistic many-body calculations that include quantum electrodynamic effects, owing to large uncertainties in the modelled transition energies of the complex systems under consideration. Our work opens the door to high-precision measurements of various atomic and nuclear properties of elements heavier than nobelium, and motivates future theoretical work.
U2 - 10.1038/nature19345
DO - 10.1038/nature19345
M3 - Article
C2 - 27680707
SN - 0028-0836
VL - 538
SP - 495
EP - 498
JO - Nature
JF - Nature
IS - 7626
ER -