Unquadbium

Unquadbium is the temporary systematic name for the undiscovered chemical element with atomic number 142. Its symbol is Uqb.

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Atomic number: The number of protons in an atom’s nucleus, which defines its chemical element. The value 142 fixes unquadbium’s identity regardless of its isotopes or electron state.
Nuclear fusion: A nuclear reaction in which light nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus. Fusion of heavy ions is a possible route to synthesizing unquadbium.
Island of stability: A predicted region of unusually long-lived superheavy nuclei among otherwise rapidly decaying isotopes. Whether the island extends toward atomic number 142 bears on the element’s possible lifetime.
Dmitri Mendeleev: A Russian chemist who formulated an influential periodic table and predicted properties of missing elements. His predictions established the precedent of leaving systematic places for elements not yet known.
Chemical element: A pure substance consisting of atoms with the same number of protons. Unquadbium would join this class if atoms with 142 protons were established.
Heavy-ion collision: A collision between accelerated atomic nuclei used to study nuclear reactions and exotic matter. Such collisions could create a compound nucleus with 142 protons.
Nuclear shell model: A model that explains nuclear structure using energy levels and closed shells of protons and neutrons. Its predictions help estimate which unquadbium isotopes might resist decay.
Element naming: The conventions and approval process used to assign names and symbols to chemical elements. Unquadbium is a placeholder that would be superseded by an approved permanent element name.
IUPAC systematic element name: A temporary name formed from digit-based roots for an element whose discovery or naming is not settled. Unquadbium is built from systematic roots encoding its atomic number.
Compound nucleus: A short-lived, highly excited nucleus formed when two nuclei fuse before it decays or emits particles. A fusion attempt would first make an excited nucleus that might lose neutrons and survive as element 142.