Search for superheavy elements with 292 ≤ A ≤ 310 in nature with accelerator mass spectrometry

There is a possibility that small traces of long-lived superheavy elements (Z ≥ 104) still exist in nature. An ultrasensitive search for such superheavy elements has been conducted at the Maier-Leibnitz Laboratory in Garching (Germany) by means of accelerator mass spectrometry. A sample of raw platinum has been scanned for 13 different masses in the range 292 ≤ A ≤ 310. The masses A = 292 and 298 were scanned in pure osmium and pure lead fluoride, respectively. For each mass, several hours of background-free data were recorded. Since no events could be attributed to superheavy elements, upper limits on their abundances in the sample materials on the order of 10⁻¹⁴–10⁻¹⁶ were established.