Possibility to synthesize Z > 118 superheavy nuclei with 54Cr projectiles

The capture and evaporation residue cross sections (ERCSs) for heavy ion fusion reactions are calculated by using the dinuclear system model. The calculation results are in good agreement with the experimental data of reactions Ca-48 +Pu-244 and Ca-48 + Cm-248. To investigate the possibility of synthesizing superheavy nuclei (SHN) with Z > 118 using the Cr-54 projectile, a comparative analysis is conducted between the ERCSs obtained with Ca-48 and Cr-54 projectiles for the synthesis of SHN with Z = 114-118. The analysis further investigates the variation trends of ERCSs, capture cross sections, fusion probabilities, and survival probabilities with an increasing compound nucleus proton number (ZCN). Furthermore, we predict the ERCSs for the synthesis of new elements Z = 119, Z = 120, Z = 121, and Z = 122 through the reactions Cr-54 + Am-243, Cr-54 + Cm-248, Cr-54 + Bk-249, and Cr-54 +Cf- 249, respectively. However, the obtained results fall below the detectable limits of currently available facilities. Thus, to successfully synthesize SHN with Z > 118, experimental efforts must focus on increasing the beam intensity and improving separation and detection techniques.

Automated summary

The capture and evaporation residue cross sections for heavy ion fusion reactions were calculated using the dinuclear system model. The results were in good agreement with experimental data. A comparative analysis between different projectiles showed the possibility of synthesizing superheavy nuclei with Z = 114-118 using the Cr-54 projectile. However, to synthesize superheavy nuclei with Z > 118, experimental efforts must focus on increasing beam intensity and improving separation and detection techniques.