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        Elements are identified by the number of protons in their nucleus. A particular element always has exactly the same number of protons in its nucleus. The nuclear of the atoms of an element also have neutrons. While the number of protons remains the same, there can be samples of the element which have different number of neutrons. These variants of an element are called “isotopes.”
       Some isotopes of some elements are stable. Other isotopes of some elements are unstable and are referred to as radioactive. This means that over time, these elemental nuclei will emit the nuclei of helium referred to as alpha particles, energetic electrons referred to as beta particles, energetic photons referred to as gamma rays and/or neutrons as they decay.
       The result of these emissions may change one isotope to another or change the element into another element. There are subtle differences between isotopes in terms of how intense their radioactivity may be and how long they take to decay. There is also enormous variation in the amount of each isotope of a particular element that can be found in nature.
       There are one hundred and eighteen elements in the periodic table. Most of them occur in nature but some are man-made. Isotopes have many uses today. They are used to create nuclear weapons, carry out medical diagnosis and treatment, take industrial measurements, date organic material to name just a few.
       So far, scientists have isolated about three thousand different isotopes of various elements. However, current nuclear theory suggests that about four thousand more isotopes may exist that have not been observed. Around the world, billions of dollars are being spent on research and equipment to find these “missing” isotopes in the hope that some of them may have unique properties that could lead to new technologies.
       It can be very difficult to produce rare isotopes. Huge colliders are used that accelerate nuclear particles to near the speed of light and then ram them together. Such collisions can either fuse atoms together to make elements higher on the periodic table or break atoms apart to create new isotopes of simpler elements that may have new and useful properties. Detectors that surround the collision point are used to detect and observe these new nuclei and their properties.
     The National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory has developed a new highly efficient gamma ray detector called the SuN. Most radioactive isotopes emit gamma rays when they decay. The new SuN detector can catalog properties of isotopes as they appear via analysis of emitted gamma rays. It is very expensive to search for new isotopes even with new devices such as the SuN.
        It is impossible to predict exactly what useful properties new isotope will have but considering all the uses that have been found for the three thousand known isotopes, it is probable that some new isotopes will lead to expansion of the current uses of radioactive isotopes and discovery of new uses and future technologies.