In Dubna, they are moving to the practical phase of creating a new element of the periodic table. The experiment starts in May. What exactly scientists are looking for, how they are moving towards discovery, and what to expect - read in our material.
Scientists want to obtain the 119th element of the periodic table and are starting the search for the 120th
Currently, there are 118 elements in the periodic table - the last one being oganesson (Og). However, for the first time in several years, the situation may change.
The Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) plans to obtain a new, 119th chemical element of the periodic table. This was announced by the director of the institute, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Grigory Trubnikov, during events marking the 70th anniversary of JINR.
We are talking about the synthesis of superheavy elements - an attempt to create new elements that are not yet in the periodic table. According to Trubnikov, this year the institute is launching a search not only for the 119th, but also for the 120th element.
How the experiment was prepared and when the first results will appear
Details of the experiment have already been partially revealed. In Dubna, they are going to look for the 119th and 120th elements at the Superheavy Element Factory, created specifically for such tasks.
To obtain new elements, scientists literally collide atoms with each other. In the case of the 119th element, they take one rare element - berkelium-249 - and "bombard" it with titanium-50 nuclei. A similar scheme is used for the 120th element: curium-248 is irradiated with chromium-54 nuclei.
The idea is that during such a collision, two nuclei can "stick together" for a fraction of a second and form a new, heavier nucleus - this will be a new element.
The experiment was prepared for about five years. A large international team participated in the work - not only Russian scientists, but also specialists from partner countries.
Trubnikov stated that JINR's competitors in Japan, the USA, and Europe have not yet been able to obtain similar results. According to him, the parameters and characteristics of their installations do not yet allow them to reach the required nuclear reaction, while JINR has such capabilities.
The experiment, according to Trubnikov, will begin in mid-May. The institute expects the first results in September-October 2026.
What the new elements will be like
We are talking about elements that should continue the periodic table after oganesson and actually start the eighth period - that is, a new horizontal row in the table, where elements with heavier nuclei than all those already known are located.
Scientists expect that their behavior may differ from what "should be" by analogy with other elements. Therefore, it is impossible to say in advance exactly what these elements will be like. They have a very heavy nucleus, and electrons behave differently than in ordinary atoms - and this can change their properties.
There is another important detail. These elements cannot be "taken in hand" or obtained in the form of a substance. We are talking literally about individual atoms that live very briefly - perhaps milliseconds or less.
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