New Outlook on the Possible Existence of Superheavy Elements in Nature

Abstract

A consistent interpretation is given to some previously unexplained phenomena seen in nature in terms of the recently discovered long-lived high spin super- and hyper-deformed isomeric states. The Po halos seen in mica are interpreted as due to the existence of such isomeric states in corresponding Po or nearby nuclei which eventually decay by gamma- or beta-decay to the ground states of 210Po, 214Po and 218Po nuclei. The low-energy 4.5 MeV alpha-particle group observed in several minerals is interpreted as due to a very enhanced alpha transition from the third minimum of the potential-energy surface in a superheavy nucleus with atomic number Z=108 (Hs) and atomic mass number around 271 to the corresponding minimum in the daughter.

arXiv comment8 pages, 8 figures, 5 tables. Paper presented at VII Int. School-Seminar on Heavy Ion Physics, May 27 - June 1, 2002, Dubna, Russia

References in corpus (3)

• Semiempirical Shell Model Masses with Magic Number Z = 126 for Superheavy Elements
• Discovery of Long-Lived Shape Isomeric States which Decay by Strongly Retarded High-Energy Particle Radioactivity
• Strongly Enhanced Low Energy Alpha-Particle Decay in Heavy Actinide Nuclei and Long-Lived Superdeformed and Hyperdeformed Isomeric States

Cited by in corpus (4)

• Existence of long-lived isomeric states in naturally-occurring neutron-deficient Th isotopes
• Evidence for a long-lived superheavy nucleus with atomic mass number A=292 and atomic number Z=~122 in natural Th
• Existence of long-lived isotopes of a superheavy element in natural Au
• The possible existence of Hs in nature from a geochemical point of view