The island of inversion is a region of the extended periodic table that contains isotopes with an unusual nuclear shell structure. The area was first described in 1975 by French physicists carrying out spectroscopic mass measurements of exotic isotopes of lithium and sodium. Since then further studies have shown that neutron-rich isotopes of sodium, magnesium and aluminium belong to this region. Studies with the purpose of defining the edges of the region are still ongoing.
External links
- http://prola.aps.org/abstract/PRC/v12/i2/p644_1 Abstract and references for the original paper
