In 1934, Enrico Fermi wanted to see if he could create heavier isotopes of uranium, so he tried bombarding uranium-238 (ordinary uranium) with slow-moving neutrons, reasoning that if the uranium nuclei captured the neutrons, he would create a new, heavier uranium isotope.
He found the experimental results puzzling; the bombardment had resulted in two new products, but he couldn't figure out what they were, since they didn't have the chemical characteristics of uranium.
At the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Chemistry in Berlin, Austrian physicist Lise Meitner worked with Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman to study radioactive substances. They decided to perform some tests on the products of Fermi's experiment.
In 1938, their research was interrupted
He found the experimental results puzzling; the bombardment had resulted in two new products, but he couldn't figure out what they were, since they didn't have the chemical characteristics of uranium.
At the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Chemistry in Berlin, Austrian physicist Lise Meitner worked with Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman to study radioactive substances. They decided to perform some tests on the products of Fermi's experiment.
In 1938, their research was interrupted