Unstable radioactive nuclei’s dual traits study in open refereed paper (Vol. 48 No. 1)

HIE-ISOLDE acceleration of radioactive beams to peer into the dual state of matter unique to nuclei.

Radioactive nuclides, found within an atom's core, all share a common feature: they have too many or too few neutrons to be stable. In a new review published recently, the authors explain how overcoming technical difficulties in accelerating such radioactive nuclei beams can help push back the boundaries of nuclear physics research. This fascinating topic is the first EPJ A paper to be subjected to an open referee process, whereby the referee's comments are included. The authors outline how the new CERN project HIE-ISOLDE will reach the energy levels needed to make two nuclei overcome the electric repulsion between them—referred to as the Coulomb barrier. This means that it will be possible to design experimental tools to explore both single-particle and collective degrees of radioactive nuclei freedom. This will improve our understanding of the unique duality in the degrees of freedom, which no other state of matter exhibits. Ultimately, physicists aim to have a “dial-a-radioactive-nuclei beam” of the same quality as stable nuclei beams.

M.J.G. Borge and K. Riisager, HIE-ISOLDE, the project and the physics opportunities, Eur. Phys. J. A 52, 334 (2016)
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