Quasifission in heavy and superheavy element formation reactions

¹ Department of Nuclear Physics, Research School of Physics and Engineering, Australian National and University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
² GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, 64291 Darmstadt, Germany
³ Helmholtz Institute Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany
⁴ Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany

^a e-mail: david.hinde@anu.edu.au
^b Current address: BARC, Mumbai, India
^c Permanent address: Department of Physics, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Central University of Kerala, Kasaragod 671314, India
^d Current address: National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA
^e Current address: Malmö University, Faculty of Technology and Society, 205 06 Malmö, Sweden

Published online: 1 December 2016

Abstract

Superheavy elements are created in the laboratory by the fusion of two heavy nuclei. The large Coulomb repulsion that makes superheavy elements decay also makes the fusion process that forms them very unlikely. Instead, after sticking together for a short time, the two nuclei usually come apart, in a process called quasifission. Mass-angle distributions give the most direct information on the characteristics and time scales of quasifission. A systematic study of carefully chosen mass-angle distributions has provided information on the global trends of quasifission. Large deviations from these systematics reveal the major role played by the nuclear structure of the two colliding nuclei in determining the reaction outcome, and thus implicitly in hindering or favouring superheavy element production.