UPFRONT

摘要

Time to rip up those posters of the periodic table. Four new elements now complete its seventh row. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics have recognised the discoveries of elements 113,115,117 and 118. They are the handiwork of teams in Japan, Russia and the US, who smashed lighter nuclei together. The resulting superheavy elements exist for only a fraction of a second before decaying into lighter atoms.