Nuclear structure of superheavy elements

Abstract

This chapter is dedicated to the nuclear structure of superheavy elements. It brings together all aspects of nuclear structure that have an influence on the stability of the nucleus on the one hand and that form the basis of experiments performed on superheavy elements to elucidate their nuclear structure on the other hand. The liquid drop model (LDM) is introduced and used to explain the limits of stability against fission, before the shell model is used to explain magic numbers and shell stabilization. Rotational properties of deformed nuclei are introduced and their sensitivity to the underlying nuclear structure is explored. The single particle structure and the influence of pairing on nuclei is discussed before experimental techniques for in-beam gamma and conversion electron spectroscopy are introduced. Finally spectroscopy following alpha decay is discussed.