Nuclear physics is a research area focused on the structure, dynamics, and interactions of atomic nuclei and their constituent nucleons, governed primarily by the strong and weak nuclear forces within the framework of quantum many-body and quantum field theories. It investigates phenomena such as nuclear binding, excitations, decay modes, and reactions, including fission, fusion, and nucleosynthesis. The field encompasses experimental and theoretical studies of stable and exotic nuclei, hadronic matter under extreme conditions, and the emergence of collective behavior from underlying nucleon–nucleon interactions, often employing accelerators, detectors, and advanced computational methods to probe fundamental properties of nuclear systems and refine effective interaction models.
A research team is using astrophysical explosions to understand the mysterious forces at work in some of the smallest building blocks in nature: atomic nuclei. In new research published in Nature Communications, the team ...
Astronomy
Mar 12, 2026
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Getting an up-close view of life at the cellular level can be as simple as placing onion skin under a microscope and adjusting the knobs. Peering deeper, into the heart of the atoms within, isn't as easy. It requires peeling ...
General Physics
Feb 27, 2026
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Separated by an ocean and more than a decade, innovative experiments with 31 tin isotopes having either a surplus or shortage of neutrons show how neutrons influence nuclear stability and element formation. The experiments, ...
General Physics
Feb 18, 2026
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For the first time, physicists have developed a model that explains the origins of unusually stable magic nuclei based directly on the interactions between their protons and neutrons. Published in Physical Review Letters, ...
An international team of researchers has systematically measured the β-decay half-lives of 40 nuclei near calcium-54, providing key experimental data for understanding the structure of extremely neutron-rich nuclei.
General Physics
Jan 19, 2026
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Researchers from the High Energy Nuclear Physics Laboratory at the RIKEN Pioneering Research Institute (PRI) in Japan and their international collaborators have made a discovery that bridges artificial intelligence and nuclear ...
General Physics
Dec 22, 2025
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207
For decades, nuclear physicists believed that "Islands of Inversion"—regions where the normal rules of nuclear structure suddenly break down—were found mostly in neutron-rich isotopes. In these unusual pockets of the nuclear ...
General Physics
Dec 8, 2025
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277
Why does lead behave so differently from every other atomic nucleus when struck by electrons? A team of physicists at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has taken an important step toward answering this question, only ...
General Physics
Dec 3, 2025
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104
Many heavy atomic nuclei are shaped more or less like squashed rugby balls than fully inflated ones, according to a theoretical study by RIKEN nuclear physicists published in The European Physical Journal A. This unexpected ...
General Physics
Nov 13, 2025
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202
For the first time, a research team from the University of Cologne has observed the electron capture decay of technetium-98, an isotope of the chemical element technetium (Tc). Electron capture decay is a process in which ...
General Physics
Oct 31, 2025
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274
