On the adsorption and reactivity of element 114, flerovium.

Flerovium (Fl, element 114) is the heaviest element chemically studied so far. To date, its interaction with gold was investigated in two gas-solid chromatography experiments, which reported two different types of interaction, however, each based on the level of a few registered atoms only. Whereas noble-gas-like properties were suggested from the first experiment, the second one pointed at a volatile-metal-like character.

Description and ontogeny of a 40-million-year-old parasitic isopodan crustacean: gen. et sp. nov.

A collection of exceptionally well-preserved fossil specimens of crustaceans, clearly representatives of Isopoda, is presented here. Excavated from the late Eocene (approximately 40 million years ago) freshwater sediments of the Trupelník hill field site near Kučlín, Czech Republic, these specimens are preserved with many details of the appendages. The morphological characteristics of the fossils were documented using macro-photography with polarised light, as well as stereo imaging.

First Study on Nihonium (Nh, Element 113) Chemistry at TASCA.

Nihonium (Nh, element 113) and flerovium (Fl, element 114) are the first superheavy elements in which the shell is occupied. High volatility and inertness were predicted for Fl due to the strong relativistic stabilization of the closed sub-shell, which originates from a large spin-orbit splitting between the and orbitals. One unpaired electron in the outermost sub-shell in Nh is expected to give rise to a higher chemical reactivity.

Spectroscopy along Flerovium Decay Chains: Discovery of ^{280}Ds and an Excited State in ^{282}Cn.

A nuclear spectroscopy experiment was conducted to study α-decay chains stemming from isotopes of flerovium (element Z=114). An upgraded TASISpec decay station was placed behind the gas-filled separator TASCA at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, Germany. The fusion-evaporation reactions ^{48}Ca+^{242}Pu and ^{48}Ca+^{244}Pu provided a total of 32 flerovium-candidate decay chains, of which two and eleven were firmly assigned to ^{286}Fl and ^{288}Fl, respectively.

New record of podocopid ostracods from Cretaceous amber.

Burmese Cretaceous amber (∼99 Ma, Myanmar) is famous for the preservation of a wide range of fauna and flora, including representatives of marine, freshwater and terrestrial groups. Here, we report on three ostracod specimens, that came visible as syninclusions to an aquatic isopod. The three specimens represent three different taxa, that were found preserved in a single piece of amber.

An unusual 100-million-year old holometabolan larva with a piercing mouth cone.

Holometabola is a hyperdiverse group characterised by a strong morphological differentiation between early post-embryonic stages (= larvae) and adults. Adult forms of Holometabola, such as wasps, bees, beetles, butterflies, mosquitoes or flies, are strongly differentiated concerning their mouth parts. The larvae most often seem to retain rather plesiomorphic-appearing cutting-grinding mouth parts.

Fly palaeo-evo-devo: immature stages of bibionomorphan dipterans in Baltic and Bitterfeld amber.

Larvae of flies and gnats (Diptera) form a crucial component of many terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems in the extant biosphere. Larvae of Diptera play a central role in water purification, matter and energy transfer in riparian ecosystems in rivers, carbon cycling in lakes and forests as well as being major decomposers of dead organic matter. Despite all these important roles, dipteran larvae are most often ignored in palaeoecological studies, due to the difficulty of the taxonomic identification of fossil larvae, but also due to the perceived importance of adult dipterans in palaeoentomological and taxonomic studies.

Two new dragonflies (Odonata: Anisoptera) from the Miocene of Carinthia (Austria).

Two new species of fossil dragonflies from the Middle Miocene fossil site Schaßbach (Carinthia, Austria) are described. The presence of Gomphaeschna carinthiae sp. nov.

First Record of Anisoptera (Insecta: Odonata) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese Amber.

The fossil dragonfly Burmalindenia imperfecta gen. et sp. nov.

New Short-Lived Isotope ^{221}U and the Mass Surface Near N=126.

Two short-lived isotopes ^{221}U and ^{222}U were produced as evaporation residues in the fusion reaction ^{50}Ti+^{176}Yb at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA. An α decay with an energy of E_{α}=9.31(5)  MeV and half-life T_{1/2}=4.

Measurement of the first ionization potential of lawrencium, element 103.

The chemical properties of an element are primarily governed by the configuration of electrons in the valence shell. Relativistic effects influence the electronic structure of heavy elements in the sixth row of the periodic table, and these effects increase dramatically in the seventh row--including the actinides--even affecting ground-state configurations. Atomic s and p1/2 orbitals are stabilized by relativistic effects, whereas p3/2, d and f orbitals are destabilized, so that ground-state configurations of heavy elements may differ from those of lighter elements in the same group.

Chemistry of the superheavy elements.

The quest for superheavy elements (SHEs) is driven by the desire to find and explore one of the extreme limits of existence of matter. These elements exist solely due to their nuclear shell stabilization. All 15 presently 'known' SHEs (11 are officially 'discovered' and named) up to element 118 are short-lived and are man-made atom-at-a-time in heavy ion induced nuclear reactions.

Nuclear chemistry. Synthesis and detection of a seaborgium carbonyl complex.

Experimental investigations of transactinoide elements provide benchmark results for chemical theory and probe the predictive power of trends in the periodic table. So far, in gas-phase chemical reactions, simple inorganic compounds with the transactinoide in its highest oxidation state have been synthesized. Single-atom production rates, short half-lives, and harsh experimental conditions limited the number of experimentally accessible compounds.

48Ca+249Bk fusion reaction leading to element Z = 117: long-lived α-decaying 270Db and discovery of 266Lr.

The superheavy element with atomic number Z=117 was produced as an evaporation residue in the (48)Ca+(249)Bk fusion reaction at the gas-filled recoil separator TASCA at GSI Darmstadt, Germany. The radioactive decay of evaporation residues and their α-decay products was studied using a detection setup that allowed measuring decays of single atomic nuclei with half-lives between sub-μs and a few days. Two decay chains comprising seven α decays and a spontaneous fission each were identified and are assigned to the isotope (294)117 and its decay products.

Superheavy element flerovium (element 114) is a volatile metal.

The electron shell structure of superheavy elements, i.e., elements with atomic number Z ≥ 104, is influenced by strong relativistic effects caused by the high Z.

Measurement of the Md3+/Md2+ reduction potential studied with flow electrolytic chromatography.

The reduction behavior of mendelevium (Md) was studied using a flow electrolytic chromatography apparatus. By application of the appropriate potentials on the chromatography column, the more stable Md(3+) is reduced to Md(2+). The reduction potential of the Md(3+) + e(-) → Md(2+) couple was determined to be -0.

Spectroscopy of element 115 decay chains.

A high-resolution α, x-ray, and γ-ray coincidence spectroscopy experiment was conducted at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung. Thirty correlated α-decay chains were detected following the fusion-evaporation reaction 48Ca + 243Am. The observations are consistent with previous assignments of similar decay chains to originate from element Z=115.

Rapid synthesis of radioactive transition-metal carbonyl complexes at ambient conditions.

Carbonyl complexes of radioactive transition metals can be easily synthesized with high yields by stopping nuclear fission or fusion products in a gas volume containing CO. Here, we focus on Mo, W, and Os complexes. The reaction takes place at pressures of around 1 bar at room temperature, i.

Production and decay of element 114: high cross sections and the new nucleus 277Hs.

The fusion-evaporation reaction 244Pu(48Ca,3-4n){288,289}114 was studied at the new gas-filled recoil separator TASCA. Thirteen correlated decay chains were observed and assigned to the production and decay of {288,289}114. At a compound nucleus excitation energy of E{*}=39.

Observation of the 3n evaporation channel in the complete hot-fusion reaction 26Mg + 248Cm leading to the new superheavy nuclide 271Hs.

The analysis of a large body of heavy ion fusion reaction data with medium-heavy projectiles (6 < or = Z < or = 18) and actinide targets suggests a disappearance of the 3n exit channel with increasing atomic number of the projectile. Here, we report a measurement of the excitation function of the reaction (248)Cm ((26)Mg,xn)(274-x)Hs and the observation of the new nuclide (271)Hs produced in the 3n evaporation channel at a beam energy well below the Bass fusion barrier with a cross section comparable to the maxima of the 4n and 5n channels. This indicates the possible discovery of new neutron-rich transactinide nuclei using relatively light heavy ion beams of the most neutron-rich stable isotopes and actinide targets.

Doubly magic nucleus (108)(270)Hs162.

Theoretical calculations predict 270Hs (Z=108, N=162) to be a doubly magic deformed nucleus, decaying mainly by alpha-particle emission. In this work, based on a rapid chemical isolation of Hs isotopes produced in the 26Mg+248Cm reaction, we observed 15 genetically linked nuclear decay chains. Four chains were attributed to the new nuclide 270Hs, which decays by alpha-particle emission with Qalpha=9.

Chemistry of superheavy elements.

The number of chemical elements has increased considerably in the last few decades. Most excitingly, these heaviest, man-made elements at the far-end of the Periodic Table are located in the area of the long-awaited superheavy elements. While physical techniques currently play a leading role in these discoveries, the chemistry of superheavy elements is now beginning to be developed.

Fluoride complexation of element 104, rutherfordium.

Fluoride complexation of element 104, rutherfordium (Rf), produced in the 248Cm(18O,5n)261Rf reaction has been studied by anion-exchange chromatography on an atom-at-a-time scale. The anion-exchange chromatographic behavior of Rf was investigated in 1.9-13.