Research Projects

Nuclear fusion processes in astronomical events lead to the formation of new elements, with up to Z=118 elements identified and synthesized in the laboratory. Theoretical predictions of thermodynamic parameters are crucial for the synthesis of superheavy elements, making it necessary to adopt a suitable method for predicting formation feasibility and survival of compound nuclei. To do this, a statistical model code written in FORTRAN language with proper modifications is proposed to calculate thermodynamic parameters such as nuclear level density, statistical temperature, excitation energy, etc. The single particle energy levels and spin projections will be obtained from the cranked Nilsson Strutinsky model. Superheavy nuclei and apart (upto Z=140) will be studied by treating the system as hot and rotating. The critical temperature or limiting temperature is determined by finding the limiting temperature at which the nucleus can exist as a droplet and the moment of co-existence of droplet-vapor phase. Preliminary calculations for Z=117 & 119 reveal that nuclear shell effects exist only at a minimum temperature, at the moment of formation of SHN. Analyzing the level density parameter and shape transitions of hot nuclei leads to the concept of limiting temperature at both ends, i.e., at minimum temperature (moment of nuclear formation) and maximum temperature (droplet-vapor phase transition). This project aims to study the thermodynamic characteristics and level density of SHN and predict limiting temperatures up to Z=140 using our statistical code with appropriate modifications. This code is highly flexible and can be used for extracting any required parameters.