MIT method can probe inside atom’s nucleus, uses electrons as messengers

Researchers at MIT have developed a novel, table-top method to probe inside an atom’s nucleus by using the atom’s own electrons as “messengers” within molecules. Traditionally, studying nuclear interiors requires large-scale particle accelerators, but this new approach leverages molecules—specifically radium monofluoride (RaF)—to create a microscopic environment where electrons briefly penetrate the nucleus. By precisely measuring energy shifts in electrons orbiting the radium atom within the molecule, the team detected subtle interactions that reveal details about the nucleus’s internal structure. This technique enables a new way to measure the nuclear magnetic distribution, reflecting how protons and neutrons align as tiny magnets inside the nucleus. The radium nucleus, notable for its asymmetric “pear-shaped” structure, amplifies effects related to fundamental symmetry violations, which are key to understanding why the universe contains more matter than antimatter. Published in Science, the study combines precision laser spectroscopy and theoretical calculations to demonstrate the method’s sensitivity to nuclear magnetization—a