Enhancing the creation of elements in laser-assisted heavy-ion fusion reactions

Low-energy fusion of heavy ions is a fascinating coupling-assisted quantum tunnelling problem, whose understanding is crucial for advancing the synthesis of new elements and isotopes. Quantum dynamical coupled-channels calculations of laser-assisted ${}^{16}$O + ${}^{238}$U fusion are presented for both a central collision and the total fusion cross-sections, suggesting that laser-nucleus interaction can enhance the average ${}^{16}$O + ${}^{238}$U fusion probability by $6-60\mathrm{\%}$ at subbarrier energies using quasi-static laser fields of intensity ${10}^{27}-{10}^{29}$ Wcm${}^{-2}$ and photon’s energy of $1$ eV. Femtosecond laser pulses are shown to reduce this enhancement by many orders of magnitude.