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40 PHYSICAL RESEARCH Cisco. Available for loan (free) from USAEC headquarters and field libraries. Cleared for television. This technical film describes three basic transcurium research ex- periments at the USAEC's Lawrence Radiation Laboratory in Liver- more by University of California scientists. Transcurium element research is part of a continuing program at the laboratory designed to further the knowledge of the chemical nature and nuclear structure of the recently discovered heavy elements, berkelium, californium, einsteinium and fermium. The specialized separation work in research was performed at the laboratory after the elements were synthesized in the Materials Testing Reactor at the USAEC's National Reactor Testing Station in Idaho. The film shows the capsule containing a one-gram mixture of Plutonium-242, americium-243, and curium-244 being released from the reactor after four years of irradiation in the highest neutron flux region of the core. This exceptionally long irradiation was required to produce millionths of a gram of the transcurium elements. The pro- cess of transmuting one element to the next heavier by neutron capture is illustrated in the film. The chemical separation techniques and equipment are explained during operational tests. Photography through the observation window depicts some of the significant steps in the chemical separation. A dramatic part of the separation occurs when the curium can be seen separating from other elements by its luminescence or light generated by radioactivity. The first research experiment illustrates the discovery of a new isotope of fermium of mass 257. This isotope proved to have a much longer half-life than predicted from existing theory. This is the first strong evidence that the search for new elements may not be limited by short half-lives. The next experiment shows the measurement of the neutron induced fission of einsteinium-253. These measurements furnished additional data for calculating the yield of products formed in neutron irra- diations. The final experiment explains how 70 per cent of the world's supply of purified berkelium was formed into a crystal to concentrate its self- luminescent light. Animation effectively illustrates how the slightly different wave lengths of light, emitted from berkelium, enabled scien- tists to determine the configuration and energy of the electrons in its outer orbit. The film covers the various steps performed in each experiment and shows the equipment required to perform the intricate scientific analyses. Other studies and long range objectives of the program are discussed. XENON TETRAFLUORIDE (1962). 5V 2 minutes, color.